ARTHROSCOPICALLY ASSISTED ROTATOR CUFF REPAIR - CORRELATION OF FUNCTIONAL RESULTS WITH INTEGRITY OF THE CUFF

Thirty-three patients (35 full-thickness rotator cuff tears) who under went arthroscopically assisted mini open repair between June 1987 and January 1990 were evaluated for shoulder function and cuff integrity. The study population was composed of 19 women and 14 men with an avera ge age of 63 years (range 35-76) and an average follow-up of 3.7 years (range 2.5-5.1). Functional results were obtained using the UCLA Shou lder Rating Scale. Integrity of the rotator cuff was established by sh oulder arthrography at a minimum 2 years postoperatively. UCLA Shoulde r Rating Scale showed 86% good/excellent results with 92% patient sati sfaction. The shoulder arthrography showed 12 (34%) full-thickness tea rs, seven (20%) partial tears, and 16 (46%) no tears. The size of the arthrographic defect correlated well with the size of the intraoperati ve tear. Seventy percent of the large tears had follow-up full-thickne ss defects and 80% of the small tears had no defect. Eighty percent an d 88% good/excellent functional results were achieved in pateints with full-thickness defects and no defects, respectively, without signific ant differences. The size of the tear at the time of the repair is a m ajor determinant of the integrity of the cuff after repair. The integr ity of the cuff at follow-up does not determine the functional outcome of the operated shoulder.