Follow-up Results in Patient with the Progressive Fatty Degeneration of the Rotator Cuff

Jae-Bum Park; Hong Jun Jung; Tae Soo Ahn; Jae Myeung Chun

doi:10.4055/jkoa.2011.46.1.28

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Park, Jung, Ahn, and Chun: Follow-up Results in Patient with the Progressive Fatty Degeneration of the Rotator Cuff

Original Article

Journal of the Korean Orthopaedic Association

Journal of the Korean Orthopaedic Association 2011; 46(1): 28-34.

Published online: 22 February 2011

DOI: https://doi.org/10.4055/jkoa.2011.46.1.28

Follow-up Results in Patient with the Progressive Fatty Degeneration of the Rotator Cuff

Jae-Bum Park, M.D.^*, Hong Jun Jung, M.D., Tae Soo Ahn, M.D., Jae Myeung Chun, M.D.

Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Asan Medical Center, University Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.

^*Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Seoul Now Hospital, Seongnam, Korea.

Correspondence to: Jae Myeung Chun, M.D. Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Asan Medical Center, College of Medicine, University of Ulsan, #388-1, Pungnap-2dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul 138-736, Korea. TEL: +82-2-3010-3530, FAX: +82-2-488-7877, jmchun@amc.seoul.kr

Received 16 December 2009 Accepted 26 October 2010

(open-access):

"This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited."

Abstract

Purpose

To evaluate the influence of progressive fatty degeneration of the rotator cuff (shown on MRI after rotator cuff repair) on the clinical outcome.

Materials and Methods

At one-year postoperatively, 25 patients with progressive fatty degeneration on MRI were evaluated using the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeon Standardized Assessment Form (ASES) score and the Constant score.

Results

Average ASES scores were 57.76±17.0 preoperatively, and had significantly increased to 84.8±11.9 at 1-year postoperatively, and to 92.7±7.7 at final follow up. Average Constant scores were 56.2±2 preoperatively, and had increased significantly to 78.2±11.7 at 1-year after surgery, and to 83.1±7.9 at final follow-up. All cases except 1 showed satisfactory results. Groups that showed re-tears, large tears or fatty degeneration on infraspinatus showed inferior results to those without these developments.

Conclusion

On average 37.4 months of follow-up, clinical outcomes had improved in 96% of patients with progressive fatty degeneration of the rotator cuff. Therefore, progressive fatty degeneration on MRI at 1 year after rotator cuff repair does not influence final clinical results.

Keywords: rotator cuff tear, fatty degeneration, repair of rotator cuff

Figures and Tables

Table 1

Differences of Clinical Results according to the Anatomical continuity

^*p-value<0.05.

Table 2

Differences of Clinical Results according to the Size of Tear

^*p-value <0.05.

Table 3

Correlation Analysis between the GFDI and the Clinical Results

Table 4

Differences of clinical results according to the progression of fatty degeneration of each rotator cuff muscle

^*p-value <0.05.

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