Comparison of the Tendon Damage Caused by Four Different Anchor Systems Used in Transtendon Rotator Cuff Repair

doi:10.1155/2012/798521

Adv Orthop. 2012; 2012: 798521.

Published online 2012 July 1. doi: 10.1155/2012/798521

PMCID: PMC3395215

Comparison of the Tendon Damage Caused by Four Different Anchor Systems Used in Transtendon Rotator Cuff Repair

Qing-Song Zhang,^1
,^2
,³ Sen Liu,^1
,² Qiuyang Zhang,¹ Yun Xue,¹ Dongxia Ge,¹ Michael J. O'Brien,² Felix H. Savoie,² and Zongbing You^1
,²^*

¹Department of Structural and Cellular Biology, and Tulane Cancer Center, LCRC, Tulane Center for Aging, Tulane Center for Stem Cell Research and Regenerative Medicine, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA

²Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Tulane Institute of Sports Medicine, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA

³Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Pu Ai Hospital of Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430033, China

*Zongbing You: Email: zyou/at/tulane.edu

Academic Editor: Virak Tan

Received December 12, 2011; Revised April 15, 2012; Accepted May 1, 2012.

This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

Objectives. The objective of this study was to compare the damage to the rotator cuff tendons caused by four different anchor systems. Methods. 20 cadaveric human shoulder joints were used for transtendon insertion of four anchor systems. The Healix Peek, Fastin RC, Bio-Corkscrew Suture, and Healix Transtend anchors were inserted through the tendons using standard transtendon procedures. The areas of tendon damage were measured. Results. The areas of tendon damage (mean

standard deviation, n = 7) were 29.1

4.3

mm² for the Healix Peek anchor, 20.4

2.3

mm² for the Fastin RC anchor, 23.4

1.2

mm² for the Bio-Corkscrew Suture anchor, 13.7

3.2

mm² for the Healix Transtend anchor inserted directly, and 9.1 ± 2.1

mm² for the Healix Transtend anchor inserted through the Percannula system (P < 0.001 or P < 0.001, compared to other anchors). Conclusions. In a cadaver transtendon rotator cuff repair model, smaller anchors caused less damage to the tendon tissues. The Healix Transtend implant system caused the least damage to the tendon tissues. Our findings suggest that smaller anchors should be considered when performing transtendon procedures to repair partial rotator cuff tears.

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