title: The effect of arthroscopic suture passing instruments on rotator cuff damage and repair strength.
abstract: There are a variety of arthroscopic devices used to pass sutures through the rotator cuff for its repair. Because they vary in size and shape, it is possible that they could damage the cuff and affect the integrity of the repair. We chose four devices for assessment--SutureLasso (Arthrex, Naples, FL), straight BirdBeak (Arthrex, Naples, FL), Viper (Arthrex, Naples, FL), and a #7 tapered Mayo needle--and performed cuff reattachments in four paired shoulders using suture anchors. These repairs were cycled and tested to failure. The SutureLasso and Mayo needle repairs failed at approximately 285 N whereas the BirdBeak and Viper failed during cycling at 150 N. It appears that the devices, which made the bigger holes in the cuff, can compromise the integrity of the repair.
authors.affiliation: NYU-Hospital for Joint Diseases Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, 301 East 17th Street, New York, New York 10003, USA.
authors.forename: Biren V
authors.initials: BV
authors.lastname: Chokshi
authors.forename: Erik N
authors.initials: EN
authors.lastname: Kubiak
authors.forename: Laith M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Jazrawi
authors.forename: Jonathan B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Ticker
authors.forename: Nigel
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.forename: Frederick J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Kummer
authors.forename: Andrew S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Rokito
mesh_terms: D001182:Arthroscopy / Q000379:methods; D004868:Equipment Failure; D006801:Humans; D008422:Materials Testing; D017006:Rotator Cuff / Q000601:surgery*; D000070636:Rotator Cuff Injuries; D013536:Suture Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation*; D016474:Weight-Bearing