Healing of partial-thickness rotator cuff tears following arthroscopic augmentation with a highly-porous collagen implant: a 5-year clinical and MRI follow-up

Background. The purpose of this study was to review patients with intermediate-and high-grade partial-thickness rotator cuff tears at 5 years following insertion of a highly-porous collagen implant on the bursal surface of the cuff to determine the durability of the clinical results and structural integrity of the healed tendons compared to their previously reported 2-year results. Methods. Eleven of the original 13 patients were examined after 5 years. Clinical scores (Constant and ASES) and MRI evaluations of tendon integrity and quality were compared to the two-year results. Results. All patients demonstrated statistically significant improvement in clinical scores compared to preoperative values. Mean Constant and ASES pain and function scores improved at 5 years but were not statistically different from the two-year scores. Eight of the 11 patients demonstrated no negative change in tendon quality on MRI. However, 3 patients had developed new, asymptomatic tears (1 low-grade articular, 2 low-grade intra-substance) of the supraspinatus tendon. Conclusions. This 5-year follow-up confirms the ongoing clinical benefit of this implant in the treatment of partial-thickness lesions of the rotator cuff and demonstrates ongoing structural tendon improvement, with most repaired tendons intact at five years.