Supraspinatus tears after total shoulder arthroplasty: A review of diagnosis and treatment

Most studies and reviews on the treatment of rotator cuff abnormality as it relates to total shoulder arthroplasty have focused on subscapularis tendon tears before or after total shoulder arthroplasty. There is an increasing appreciation that rotator cuff dysfunction after total shoulder arthroplasty is more common than once believed and that the abnormality often involves the supraspinatus tendon. This review focuses specifically on the impact of tears of the supraspinatus tendon on preoperative planning for total shoulder arthroplasty and also on the evaluation and treatment of supraspinatus tears after total shoulder arthroplasty.