Abstract
Objectives:
Arthroscopic superior capsule reconstruction (SCR) using acellular human dermal allograft (DA) is a recently developed procedure for the treatment of irreparable rotator cuff tears to reduce pain and restore shoulder function. The purpose of this study was to report clinical and structural outcomes of patients who underwent SCR with DA for irreparable tears of the posterosuperior rotator cuff. We hypothesized that SCR using DA would result in significant improvements in clinical outcomes and that outcomes would be positively correlated with graft integrity.
Methods:
Patients who underwent SCR using DA for irreparable tears of the supraspinatus and infraspinatus tendons and who were at least two years out from surgery were included. Patients reported clinical outcomes were assessed prospectively by the use of the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons (ASES) Score, Single Assessment Numerical Evaluation (SANE) Score, Quick Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) Score, and patient satisfaction. Structurally, acromiohumeral distances (AHD) were assessed both pre- and postoperatively with standard radiographs. Integrity of the DA was assessed by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Clinical failures were defined as persistent loss of function and/or pain. Complications were also recorded.
Results:
Twenty-one patients who underwent SCR with a mean age of 56 (range 41-65) had and a mean follow up of 2.1 years (range 2 - 3) were included. All postoperative outcome scores improved significantly: ASES score improved from 54.2 to 83.9 (p<0.001), SANE score improved from 43.6 to 71.2 points (p<0.001) and QuickDASH improved from 37.5 to 16.2 points (p=0.002). Median satisfaction of all patients was 9 (range 1-10). Complete radiographs were obtained in 18/21 (85.7%) of patients and showed a significant increase of the mean AHD from 7.0 mm to 8.3 mm, pre- to postoperatively (p=0.029). Postoperative MRI’s were obtained in 95% (20/21) of the patients and showed a graft integrity rate of 50% (10/20). There were no significant differences in clinical outcome scores (p=0.214) comparing patients with intact grafts to patients with torn grafts. The AHD increased significantly from pre- to postoperatively in patients with intact grafts (p=0.003), while it didn’t increase significantly for those with a torn graft (p=0.432). There was one clinical failure in one patient who achieved no functional improvement who later underwent revision SCR and ended up with a successful clinical outcome. No postoperative complications occurred.
Conclusion:
SCR using DA for irreparable tears of the rotator cuff improves clinical outcomes with high patient satisfaction and low complication rates at short-term follow-up. Interestingly, intact grafts, although correlated with improved AHD, had no positive effects on clinical outcomes at final follow-up.