Clinical and structural results of arthroscopic repair of bursal-side partial-thickness rotator cuff tears.

BACKGROUND: There have been few studies using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to evaluate the clinical outcomes and structural results after arthroscopic repair of bursal-side partial-thickness rotator cuff tears (PTRCTs).

METHODS: From 2009 to 2012, 73 consecutive patients with bursal-side PTRCTs underwent arthroscopic repair. Fifty-nine of them were retrospectively evaluated as Ellman classification grade 2 (group A, n = 11) or grade 3 (group B, n = 48). All repairs were performed with a technique that preserved the intact articular fibers and repaired the avulsed bursal flap. The University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA) score and Constant score were assessed before the operation and at the final follow-up. Postoperative cuff integrity was determined with MRI following Sugaya's classification.

RESULTS: At the 2-year follow-up, the average UCLA score increased from 17.3 ± 3.7 to 33.3 ± 2.2, and the Constant score increased from 65.3 ± 12.9 to 93.9 ± 5.1 (P < .001). Forty-nine patients received follow-up MRI examinations at an average of 10.3 months after surgery. Of these 49 patients, 41 patients (83.7%) had a healed tendon and 8 patients had partial tears. Neither the clinical scores nor the retear rates on follow-up MRI were significantly different between the 2 groups.

CONCLUSIONS: Arthroscopic repair of bursal-side PTRCTs achieved good functional and structural outcomes at a minimum of 2 years after surgery.