title: The repair of chronic massive ruptures of the rotator cuff of the shoulder by use of a freeze-dried rotator cuff.
abstract: In sixteen patients with massive tears of the rotator cuff of the shoulder, bridging of the defect with a freeze-dried graft of a rotator cuff from a cadaver produced a satisfactory repair in all cases. A good or excellent functional result was obtained in all but two patients, with a definite decrease or absence of nocturnal pain in all sixteen. The operative technique includes avoidance of a complete acromionectomy and an adequate suture of the deltoid muscle to the acromion after an acromioplasty.
mesh_terms: D000173:Acromioclavicular Joint / Q000601:surgery; D000368:Aged; D001178:Arthroplasty / Q000379:methods*; D002102:Cadaver; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009132:Muscles / Q000601:surgery / Q000637:transplantation*; D009135:Muscular Diseases / Q000601:surgery*; D012422:Rupture, Spontaneous / Q000601:surgery; D012785:Shoulder Joint / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D014184:Transplantation, Homologous