Low-term results from non-conventional partial arthroplasty for treating rotator cuff arthroplasthy()

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the evolution of the functional results from CTA(®) hemiarthroplasty for surgically treating degenerative arthroplathy of the rotator cuff, with a mean follow-up of 5.4 years. METHODS: Eighteen patients who underwent CTA(®) partial arthroplasty to treat degenerative arthroplathy of the rotator cuff between April 2007 and June 2009 were reevaluated, with minimum and mean follow-ups of 4.6 years and 5.4 years, respectively. Pre and postoperative parameters for functionality and patient satisfaction were used (functional scale of the University of California in Los Angeles, UCLA). All the patients underwent prior conservative treatment for 6 months and underwent surgical treatment because of the absence of satisfactory results. Patients were excluded if they presented any of the following: previous shoulder surgery; pseudoparalysis; insufficiency of the coracoacromial arch (type 2 B in Seebauer's classification); neurological lesions; or insufficiency of the deltoid muscle and the subscapularis muscle. RESULTS: With a mean follow-up of 5.4 years, 14 patients considered that they were satisfied with the surgery (78%); the mean range of joint motion for active elevation improved from 55.8° before the operation to 82.0° after the operation; the mean external rotation improved from 18.9° before the operation to 27.3° after the operation; and the mean medial rotation remained at the level of the third lumbar vertebra. The mean UCLA score after the mean follow-up of 5.4 years was 23.94 and this was an improvement in comparison with the preoperative mean and the mean 1 year after the operation. CONCLUSION: The functional results from CTA(®) hemiarthroplasty for treating rotator cuff arthroplasty in selected patients remained satisfactory after a mean follow-up of 5.4 years.