Project description:Disorders of the long head of the biceps tendon (LHB) are a well-recognised cause of shoulder pain despite the function of the long head of the biceps remaining poorly understood. There has been a dramatic rise in the number of biceps tenodesis procedures being performed in the last decade. This may partly be attributed to concerns regarding residual cosmetic deformity and pain after biceps tenotomy though there is little evidence to suggest that functional outcomes of tenodesis are superior to biceps tenotomy. Current literature focuses on LHB disorders with concomitant rotator cuff tears. The aim of this review is to discuss the anatomy of the LHB, the pathogenesis of tendinopathy of the LHB, indications of biceps tenodesis and tenotomy and compare the current literature on the functional outcomes of these procedures for LHB disorders in the absence of rotator cuff tears.
Project description:Irreparable large to massive rotator cuff tears (MIRCTs) are a prevalent cause of shoulder pain and dysfunction, and nonoperative treatment may not always be effective. Various surgical options exist, with isolated biceps tenotomy/tenodesis (BT) or arthroscopic partial repair with associated biceps tenotomy/tenodesis (PCR-BT) being the most common. The aim of this study was to systematically review the available data on the clinical and functional outcomes of BT and PCR-BT in patients with MIRCTs.MethodsMEDLINE, Embase, and CENTRAL databases were searched for studies on the treatment of MIRCT. We included studies with BT or PCR-BT with a minimum follow-up of 24 months. The MINORS (Methodological Index for Nonrandomized Studies) score was used to assess study quality. Outcomes included were the visual analog scale for pain, functional scores such as Constant-Murley and American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons, range of motion, radiological measurements, and complications.ResultsA total of 1101 patients (506 had a BT and 595 had a PCR-BT) from 22 studies were included (cases series = 13, case-control = 7, randomized control trial = 1, prospective cohort study = 1). The mean MINORS score was 13.2 ± 3.2. The mean age and follow-up were 67 ± 6.8 years and 4.58 ± 1.1 years (range, 2, 12), respectively. The VAS improvement showed at the last follow-up for PCR-BT (range, 1.97, 5.8) and BT (range, 4, 6.1). CMS was improved at the final follow-up for PCR-BT (range, 13, 47.6) and BT (range, 10.8, 28). Regarding the ASES, it has demonstrated significant improvements for PCR-BT (range, 31.81, 44.8) and BT (range, 30,45.8). For forward flexion, PCR-BT showed improvement (range, -14°, 59.4°), as well as the BT group (range, 2°, 27.9°).ConclusionsThis systematic review demonstrated that both BT and PCR-BT improve functional outcomes and reduce pain at midterm follow-up for MIRCT. Since we know that a failed cuff repair would worsen the shoulder, it might be beneficial in terms of the risk-benefit ratio to not repair in certain patients with MIRCT.
Project description:Biceps tenodesis and tenotomy are both effective surgical procedures for management of shoulder pain and dysfunction secondary to SLAP tears, biceps tendinitis, rotator interval pulley lesions, and failed SLAP repairs. These procedures are generally safe with low complication rates. However, failure of a proximal biceps tenodesis or tenotomy can rarely lead to symptomatic Popeye deformity with pain and cramping with repetitive forearm supination and elbow flexion. Surgical revision is indicated in young active patients to restore the length tension relationship of the biceps brachii to improve supination and flexion strength, as well as to provide symptomatic relief and improved endurance. Failed biceps tenodesis can be a challenging surgical scenario, as oftentimes there is limited available proximal biceps tendon tissue, especially in the setting of prior subpectoral biceps tenodesis. We report a technique of revision open subpectoral biceps tenodesis with allograft tendon augmentation for the management of symptomatic Popeye deformity in young active patients with little to no remaining proximal biceps tendon.
Project description:BackgroundOptimal treatment of the diseased long head of the biceps (LHB) tendon during rotator cuff repair remains a topic of debate: tenotomy or tenodesis. A recent meta analysis revealed no difference in strength or functional outcome between treatments. The included studies varied in methodological quality, and only two were randomized controlled trials (RCTs). As strong evidence in favor of either tenotomy or tenodesis is still lacking, we designed this randomized controlled trial to compare functional outcomes after tenotomy and tenodesis when performed in adjunct to arthroscopic rotator cuff repair.MethodsPatients older than 50 years with a supraspinatus and/or infraspinatus tendon rupture sized smaller than 3 cm, who are encountered with LHB pathology, will be randomized to either LHB tenotomy or LHB tenodesis. Clinical and patient-reported data will be collected pre-operatively, 6 weeks, 3 months and 1 year after surgery. Primary outcome is overall shoulder function evaluated with the Constant score at 1 year after surgery. As additional measures of shoulder function, two patient reported outcomes (the Dutch Oxford Shoulder Test and the Disabilities of the Arm Shoulder and Hand questionnaire) will be assessed. Other evaluations include cosmetic appearance evaluated by the "Popeye" deformity, elbow flexion strength, arm cramping pain, MRI-based location of the biceps tendon, quality of life, and duration of surgery. To detect non-inferiority with a one-sided, two-sample t-test with 80 % power and a significance level (alpha) of 0.025, the required sample size is 98 patients.DiscussionTreatment of LHB tendon lesions is performed differently around the world and meta analyses do not provide conclusive evidence in favor of one of these treatments. This study will strengthen evidence on the risks and benefits of LHB tenotomy and tenodesis in adjunct to a rotator cuff repair, which is important for managing patient expectations.Trial registrationDutch Trial Register ( NTR3255 ) January 12, 2012, ClinicalTrials.gov (ID NCT02655848 ) January 14, 2016, retrospectively registered.
Project description:PurposeThe purpose of this study is to use a large national database to assess short-term adverse events following arthroscopic rotator cuff repair in patients 65 years and older.MethodsThe ACS NSQIP database was queried to identify patients that underwent arthroscopic rotator cuff repair between December 31, 2015, and January 1, 2017. Patients were split into two groups: 1) between 40-65 years old and 2) 65+ years old. Cases involving open rotator cuff repair, total shoulder arthroplasty, hemiarthroplasty, and emergency surgery were excluded. Exact matching was used to control for confounding variables, including sex, body mass index (BMI), American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score, operative time, and several medical comorbidities. After matching, the incidence of several 30-day patient complication measures was compared between the groups. Binary logistic regression was used to identify covariates associated with various 30-day complications.ResultsA total of 17,880 patients were included in the study. 69.4% (n = 12,404) patients were between 40 and 65 years old and 30.6% (n = 5,476) patients were 65+ years old. After matching, 9,210 patients were included in the final analysis. After matching, patients 65 years and older were more likely to experience 30-day unplanned readmission (P = .035) and overall medical complications (P = .036). There were no significant differences in most 30-day complication measures, including mortality (P = .250), reoperation (P = .449), non-home discharge (P = .255), surgical complications (P = .146), and several medical complications, including myocardial infarction (P = .165), deep venous thromboembolism (P = .206), pulmonary embolism (P = .196), and cerebrovascular accident (P > .999) between the two age groups.ConclusionsIn this matched cohort study, patients 65 years and older experienced a higher rate of 30-day unplanned readmission and overall medical complications following elective arthroscopic rotator cuff repair relative to patients under 65. However, these older patients did not have significantly worse rates of other 30-day complication measures, including mortality, reoperation, return to the OR, and non-home discharge.
Project description:BackgroundPatients with partial thickness rotator cuff tears (PTRCTs) often present with concurrent pathology of the long head of the biceps tendon (LHBT). To address both conditions simultaneously, long head of the biceps (LHB) tenotomy or tenodesis can be performed at the time of arthroscopic rotator cuff repair (RCR). This study aims to compare postoperative shoulder active range of motion (AROM) and complications following transtendinous RCR with concurrent LHB tenodesis or tenotomy.MethodsA total of 90 patients with PTRCTs met inclusion criteria for this study. Patients who underwent tear-completion-and-repair, revision surgery, or open repair of the LHB tendon were excluded. Patients were stratified into tenotomy, arthroscopic suprapectoral tenodesis, or no biceps operation cohorts and were propensity matched 1:1:1 on age, sex, body mass index, and smoking status. Primary outcome measures included AROM in forward flexion, abduction, external rotation, and internal rotation at 6 weeks, 3 months, and 6 months postoperatively. The development of severe stiffness and rates of rotator cuff retear at final follow-up were recorded as secondary outcomes.ResultsWhen comparing the tenotomy and tenodesis cohorts, tenotomy patients were found to have increased AROM at 3 months in forward flexion (153.2° vs. 130.1°, P = .004), abduction (138.6° vs. 114.2°, P = .019), and external rotation (60.4° vs. 43.8°, P = .014), with differences in forward flexion remaining significant at 6 months (162.4° vs. 149.4°, P = .009). There were no significant differences in interval rates of recovery in any plane between cohorts. Additionally, there were no significant differences in rates of symptomatic retears between groups (P = .458). Rates of severe postoperative stiffness approached but did not achieve statistical significance between tenotomy (4.2%) and tenodesis (29.2%) cohorts (P = .066). Smoking status was a significant predictor of severe stiffness (odds ratio, 13.69; P = .010).ConclusionDespite significant differences in absolute AROM between cohorts, the decision to perform tenotomy or tenodesis was not found to differentially affect rates of AROM recovery for patients undergoing arthroscopic transtendinous RCR for PTRCT. Notably, however, transient stiffness complications were more commonly observed in smokers, and data trends suggested an increased risk of stiffness for patients undergoing LHB tenodesis. Overall, postoperative stiffness is likely multifactorial and attributable to both patient- and procedure-specific factors, and LHB tenotomy may be more appropriate for patients with risk factors for developing stiffness postoperatively.
Project description:ObjectivesTenotomy and tenodesis of the long head of biceps tendon are effective pain-relieving treatments. However, there is no consensus on the functional outcome after these surgical procedures. We hypothesized that there would be no difference in ambulation parameters after recovery from the surgery between rats that underwent tenotomy versus tenodesis procedures.MethodsTwenty-four New Zealand rats were used and randomly divided into three groups. Each group received one of the following surgeries: tenotomy, tenodesis, and sham operation. A video-based walking track system was applied for gait analysis at day -1, 1, 3, 5, 7, 14 and 21 for each rat. Temporal and spatial parameters were obtained, and asymmetric index was calculated for each parameter.ResultsCompared to the tenotomy and sham-operated groups, the rats in the tenodesis group had shorter stance phase, longer swing time, longer step length, smaller paw length, smaller intermediary toe-spread length, smaller toe-spread length, and larger foot angle right after the tenodesis procedure. After day 14, all parameters were equivalent to those of the sham-operated group. At the end of the study, there were no functional changes found in tenotomy and tenodesis groups compared with the sham-operated group and preoperative status.ConclusionTransient functional alterations in temporal and spatial parameters are found after tenotomy and tenodesis in a rat model. The functional changes in the tenodesis group existed for a longer period than in tenotomy group; however, and all parameters showed no significant differences when compared with the sham group at the conclusion of the study.
Project description:Biceps tenotomy is a common procedure performed in arthroscopic shoulder surgery. Numerous studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of both biceps tenotomy and tenodesis to relieve pain and restore function for the diagnoses of bicipital tenosynovitis, SLAP tears, rotator interval pulley lesions, and failed SLAP repairs. It is also frequently performed as a concomitant procedure with arthroscopic rotator cuff repair. We report a technique to improve the efficiency of arthroscopic bicep tenotomy using a biceps squeeze maneuver. This is a simple method of manually squeezing the biceps muscle belly while performing the arthroscopic biceps tenotomy. This shortens and tensions the intra-articular portion of the tendon to facilitate a more safe and efficient procedure.
Project description:The long head of the biceps (LHB) tendon is a potential source of shoulder pain encountered by orthopaedic surgeons. A multitude of approaches to addressing LHB tendinopathy have been described. These include various surgical techniques such as tenodesis versus tenotomy, an arthroscopic versus an open approach, and differing methods of tenodesis fixation. Our preferred approach to addressing LHB tendinopathy is through a mini-open approach using a double-loaded 4.5-mm suture anchor. This Technical Note with accompanying video describes our technique for performing this procedure, as well as supporting clinical evidence and technical pearls.
Project description:The proximal biceps tendon is a common source of shoulder pain and dysfunction. When patients continue to have pain after exhaustive nonoperative treatment, the long head of the biceps tendon can be effectively treated with a tenotomy or tenodesis. Although biceps tenotomy is a less complex and highly reliable treatment, there is the potential for suboptimal outcomes including muscle cramping, fatigue, cosmetic deformity, and supination weakness. Biceps tenodesis eliminates the source of shoulder pain while securing the tendon proximally. Currently, there are multiple techniques for performing a biceps tenodesis (arthroscopic, open suprapectoral, open subpectoral) and myriad fixation methods (bio-tenodesis screw, bone bridge, cortical button, all-suture anchor). Our article presents a technique for a mini-open subpectoral biceps tenodesis using an onlay technique with an all-suture anchor preloaded with needles. This technique allows efficient and proper tendon fixation while minimizing potential complications.