Patients with diabetes mellitus experience poorer outcomes after arthroscopic rotator cuff repair.

Hypothesis: The purpose of this study was to identify potential differences using validated clinical outcome instruments between patients with and without diabetes mellitus (DM) after arthroscopic rotator cuff repair (RCR).

Methods: Six-hundred eighty-four patients (32 with and 652 without DM) who underwent arthroscopic RCR were prospectively followed using the visual analog pain scale, Simple Shoulder Test, Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation, American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons score, and Veterans RAND 12-item Health Survey (mental and physical component scores) preoperatively and at 3, 6, 12, and 24 months postoperatively.

Results: Patients with DM experienced significantly more pain ( = .0172) and had lower Simple Shoulder Test ( = .0458) and American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons ( = .0200) scores than patients without DM 6 months after surgery. Although differences between groups are seen at other postoperative time points, none are statistically significant.They also exhibited lower self-rated mental health status at 12 months ( = .0034) and 24 months ( = .0077), as well as lower self-rated physical health status at 12 months ( = .0223) and 24 months ( = .0077). Changes in scores from preoperatively to postoperatively were not different for patients with DM vs. without DM.

Conclusion: Patients with DM experience significantly more pain, exhibit significantly poorer shoulder function, and report persistently diminished mental and physical health status compared with their counterparts without DM after undergoing arthroscopic RCR. Although these differences did not reach the minimal clinically important difference, orthopedic surgeons should be cognizant of DM as an outcome-modifying variable when selecting, counseling, and treating patients with rotator cuff tears. Glycemic control should be scrutinized and optimized during the perioperative medical evaluation and ultimately factored into the surgical risk profile and prognosis.