Comparison of Arthroscopic Debridement and Repair in the Treatment of Ellman Grade II Bursal-side Partial-thickness Rotator Cuff Tears: A Prospective Randomized Controlled Trial.

Objective: To compare the effects of arthroscopic debridement and repair in treating Ellman grade II bursal-side partial-thickness rotator cuff tears.

Methods: This is a single-center, prospective, randomized controlled trial. From September 2017 to April 2019, 78 patients underwent arthroscopic debridement (35 patients) or repair (43 patients) due to Ellman grade II bursal-side partial-thickness rotator cuff tears. Twenty-six men and 52 women were included in the study, with an average age of 56.31 years (range, 42 to 74 years). After the acromioplasty was formed, the debridement group only performed stump refreshing and surrounding soft tissue cleaning, while the repair group converted the partial tears into full-thickness tears and then sutured them by single row or suture bridge technique. The visual analogue scale (VAS), Constant-Murley shoulder (CMS), American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons (ASES), and University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) scores were used to evaluate clinical results preoperatively and at 6, 12, and 18 months postoperatively. Magnetic resonance imaging was used to assess the integrity of the rotator cuff, muscle atrophy, and fat infiltration.

Results: A total of 85 patients met the inclusion criteria and were randomly divided into the debridement group (41 patients) and the repair group (43 patients). During the 18-month follow-up period, a total of seven patients were lost to follow-up. The functional scores of both groups were significantly improved: the VAS score decreased 5.06 and 4.63 in the debridement group (5.77 preoperative to 0.71 postoperative) and the repair group (5.49 to 0.86) (P < 0.05). Moreover, the CMS, ASES, UCLA scores increased 51.63, 58.24, 20.57 in debridement group (39.46 to 91.09, 34.14 to 92.38, 13.29 to 33.86), and increased 48.14, 60.53, 20.93 in repair group (43.63 to 91.77, 33.10 to 93.63, 12.58 to 33.51) (P < 0.05). No significant differences were found in functional scores between the two groups at 6, 12, and 18 months postoperatively (P > 0.05). The magnetic resonance imaging showed no re-tears, and no difference was observed in the degree of muscle atrophy and fat infiltration between the two groups (P > 0.05). Except for four cases of shoulder stiffness, no other obvious surgery-related complications were found.

Conclusion: For Ellman grade II bursal-side partial-thickness rotator cuff tears, both the debridement and repair groups achieved good results during 18-month follow-ups, with no difference between the two groups.