Pre-operative corticosteroid injections improve functional outcomes in patients undergoing arthroscopic repair of high-grade partial-thickness rotator cuff tears. Muscles Ligaments Tendons J 2017;7(1):34-39
Date
07/19/2017Pubmed ID
28717609Pubmed Central ID
PMC5505593DOI
10.11138/mltj/2017.7.1.034Scopus ID
2-s2.0-85019106209 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 14 CitationsAbstract
BACKGROUND: Subacromial corticosteroid injections (CSI's) are a common non-surgical treatment for rotator cuff tears. Few studies have assessed the effects of pre-operative CSI's on postoperative functional outcomes.
METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted of 132 patients with high-grade, partial-thickness rotator cuff tears (PTRCT's). The subjects were divided into two groups based on whether they received a CSI or not. The CSI group was further divided into three subgroups based on when they received a pre-operative injection: 0-3 months, 3-6 months, >6 months before surgery. The Visual Analog Scores (VAS), American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeon scores (ASES), and Constant scores were recorded prior to surgery and at a one-year post-operative follow-up appointment for each subject.
RESULTS: Patients who received a pre-operative CSI (n=92) improved significantly more than the non-injection group (n=40) in all outcome measures. The 0-3 months injection subgroup experienced a significant increase in ASES and Constant score (p=0.019 and 0.014, respectively) compared to the other two subgroups, but the VAS score decrease only trended toward significance (p=0.091). The sample as a whole experienced significant improvement in all three outcome measures.
CONCLUSION: Patients undergoing arthroscopic repair of a high-grade PTRCT may benefit from a pre-operative CSI 0-3 months before surgery.
LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: IIb.