Transtendon repair in partial articular supraspinatus tendon tear

Introduction: Partial thickness rotator cuff tears (PTRCTs) are common, with an incidence between 17% and 37%, and a high prevalence in throwing athletes. Different surgical procedures are suggested when partial tears involve the articular portion of the rotator cuff, including arthroscopic debridement of the tear, debridement with acromioplasty, tear completion and repair, and lately transtendon repair. This systematic review describes the transtendon repair and examines indications, contraindications, complications and clinical outcome. Source of data: We identified clinical studies listed in the Pubmed Google Scholar, CINAHL, Cochrane Central and Embase Biomedical databases in English and Italian concerning the clinical outcomes following treatment of partial articular supraspinatus tendon tear using transtendon surgical repair. Areas of agreement: Eighteen studies fulfilled our inclusion criteria. All were published between 2005 and 2016, three were retrospective, and 15 prospective. The total number of patients was 507 with a mean age of 50.8 years. Areas of controversy: Tear completion and repair and transtendon repair alone produce similar results. Growing points: Transtendon surgical repair allows to obtain goodexcellent results in the treatment of partial articular supraspinatus tendon tears. Areas timely for developing research: Further studies are needed to produce clear guidelines in the treatment of partial articular supraspinatus tendon tears. Level of evidence: IV.