Mini-open rotator cuff repair does not result in intractable stiffness.

We conducted a study to determine whether intractable postoperative stiffness or deltoid damage results from primary arthroscopic anterior acromioplasty and mini-open repair of full-thickness tears of the superior rotator cuff. Eighty-three repairs (80 patients) were available for follow-up at a mean (range) of 57.2 (12-98) months. Range of motion at presentation and motion in contralateral shoulder at final follow-up were used for comparison. Significant improvements were seen in active forward elevation, passive forward elevation, and active external rotation at 90° abduction. Final motion in the operative and contralateral shoulders was similar. American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons shoulder index improved significantly (P<.0001) from 50.0 before surgery to 88.3 after surgery. Although 1 patient had a symptomatic retear that required revision surgery, there were no cases of intractable stiffness, and there were no cases of deltoid damage.