This case-control study of 603 patients who underwent primary rotator cuff repair by a single surgeon asks: which preoperative factors independently predict healing failure, and can they be combined into a clinically usable scoring system? Repair integrity was assessed by MRI or CT arthrography at minimum 12 months postoperatively.
When counseling a patient before rotator cuff repair, calculate the RoHI preoperatively: a patient older than 70 with a retracted, large tear, Goutallier ≥2 infraspinatus fatty infiltration, osteoporosis, and heavy labor may score ≥10 points — an 86% predicted failure rate that should prompt serious discussion of alternative procedures such as superior capsular reconstruction or reverse total shoulder arthroplasty rather than standard repair alone.
This case-control study of 603 patients who underwent primary rotator cuff repair by a single surgeon asks: which preoperative factors independently predict healing failure, and can they be combined into a clinically usable scoring system? Repair integrity was assessed by MRI or CT arthrography at minimum 12 months postoperatively.
When counseling a patient before rotator cuff repair, calculate the RoHI preoperatively: a patient older than 70 with a retracted, large tear, Goutallier ≥2 infraspinatus fatty infiltration, osteoporosis, and heavy labor may score ≥10 points — an 86% predicted failure rate that should prompt serious discussion of alternative procedures such as superior capsular reconstruction or reverse total shoulder arthroplasty rather than standard repair alone.