Defining Indications for Rotator Cuff Repair: Predictors of Failure of Nonoperative Treatment of Chronic, Symptomatic, Full-thickness Rotator Cuff Tears

Authors:

Warren R. Dunn, MD, MPH, John E. (Jed) Kuhn, MD, Keith M. Baumgarten, MD, Julie Y. Bishop, MD, Robert H. Brophy, MD, James L. Carey, MD, MPH, G. Brian Holloway, MD, Grant L. Jones, MD, C. Benjamin Ma, MD, Eric C. McCarty, MD, Edwin E. Spencer Jr, MD, Armando F. Vidal, MD, Brian R. Wolf, MD, MS, and Rick W. Wright, MD

Abstract:

The indications for surgical repair of a chronically torn, symptomatic rotator cuff are not clear (Oh, 2006; Wolf, 2007). As such there is wide geographic variation in the rates of rotator cuff repair (Vitale, 1999). Nonoperative treatment has been shown to be effective for many patients (Kuhn, 2011), yet some authors strongly recommend surgical repair (Lahteenmaki, 2007). The purpose of this study is to help define the indications for rotator cuff repair by identifying predictors of failure of nonoperative treatment using a multicenter prospective cohort study design. Our hypothesis was that younger, more active patients would be more likely to fail nonoperative treatment and request surgery.

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