THE DROPPING AND HORNBLOWERS SIGNS IN EVALUATION OF ROTATOR-CUFF TEARS

We studied 54 patients operated on for combined supraspinatus and infr aspinatus rotator-cuff tears, The presence or absence of the dropping and hornblower's clinical signs of impaired external rotation were cor related with Goutallier stage-3 or stage-4 fatty degeneration of infra spinatus and teres ruiner. These grades of fatty degeneration have pre viously been correlated with a poorer outcome from reconstructive surg ery. We found that hornblower's sign had 100% sensitivity and 93% spec ificity for irreparable degeneration of teres minor and the dropping s ign 100% sensitivity and 100% specificity for similar degeneration of infraspinatus. In seven patients, teres minor showed hypertrophy: This muscle can give useful function for the activities of daily living in patients with rotator-cuff tears in whom it is intact.