Treatment of massive and recurrent rotator cuff tears augmented with a poly-l-lactide graft, a preliminary study.

Background: The incidence of failed rotator cuff repairs remains high, especially in the setting of massive tears or revision repairs. The purpose of this study was to evaluate patient outcomes and repair integrity after augmentation with the repair patch, a poly-l-lactide synthetic polymer.

Methods: Sixteen consecutive patients with massive or recurrent rotator cuff tears underwent open repair with synthetic poly-l-lactide patch augmentation.

Heat generated with pegged or keeled glenoid components fixed with defined amounts of cement.

Glenoid component loosening is a common complication of total shoulder arthroplasty and has been associated with the progression of radiolucent lines at the glenoid bone-cement interface. Generation of heat during the exothermic reaction of cement curing may cause osteonecrosis of bone, potentially leading to the development of radiolucent lines. The purpose of this study was to measure the heat generated with various defined amounts of cement used for glenoid component fixation.