Arthroscopic Repair of Rotator Cuff Tears: Trans Osseous Giant Needle Sutures vs Anchor Technique

Abstract

Background: Rotator cuff injuries are a prevalent reason for shoulder pain across all age groups. Current metaanalyses and systematic reviews indicate that double-row repairs may exhibit elevated healing rates and reduced retear occurrences; nonetheless, clinical results don't significantly prefer one repair technique over another. Aim: To compare clinical and radiological outcomes between arthroscopic repair of rotator cuff tears with transosseous giant needle sutures vs arthroscopic repair with anchor technique. Patients and methods: This study is prospective comparative research of forty shoulders with rotator cuff tear that had arthroscopic cuff repair at Beni-Suef University Hospital. 40 shoulders in 40 cases were involved in this research in the period between October 2022 to February 2024. Results: Demographics, preoperative OSS (Group 1: 38.5±4.7; Group 2: 39.8±4.1), and complications were comparable (p>0.05). Operative time was shorter in Group 2 (1.1±0.2 vs. 2.1±0.5 hours, p<0.001). Both groups showed significant OSS improvement at 6 months (Group 1: 26.2±3; Group 2: 24.6±2.3; p<0.001 within groups), with no intergroup difference (p=0.055). ROM improved significantly in both (p<0.001), but Group 2 excelled in forward flexion (161.8±8.9° vs. 138.8±16.1°, p<0.001) and external rotation (72.5±7° vs. 63.8±11.2°, p=0.005); internal rotation was similar (68±9.4° vs. 65±10.8°, p=0.353). On Group 1 retear occurred. Conclusion: No statistically significant differences were observed among the examined groups preoperatively. However, highly statistically significant differences were identified both intra and postoperatively. Specifically, operative time (in hours) demonstrated a highly significant variation between groups. Furthermore, at 6 months postoperatively, a highly statistically significant improvement in range of motion was observed, favouring the transosseous giant needle technique.