Patient education: Rotator cuff repair (The Basics)

What is rotator cuff repair? — 

This is surgery on the rotator cuff. The rotator cuff is made up of 4 shoulder muscles and their tendons (figure 1). Tendons are strong bands of tissue that connect muscles to bones.

Rotator cuff repair can be done to fix a serious injury such as a tear.

How do I prepare for rotator cuff repair? — 

The doctor or nurse will tell you if you need to do anything special to prepare. Before your procedure, your doctor will do an exam. They might send you to get tests, such as:

●Lab tests

●X-rays or other imaging tests – These create pictures of the inside of the body.

Your doctor will also ask you about your "health history." This involves asking you questions about any health problems you have or had in the past, past surgeries, and any medicines you take. Tell them about:

●Any medicines you are taking – This includes any prescription or "over-the-counter" medicines you use, plus any herbal supplements you take. It helps to write down and bring a list of any medicines you take, or bring a bag with all of your medicines with you.

●Any allergies you have

●Any bleeding problems you have – Certain medicines, including some herbs and supplements, can increase the risk of bleeding. Some health conditions also increase this risk.

You will also get information about:

●Eating and drinking before your procedure – In some cases, you might need to "fast" before surgery. This means not eating or drinking anything for a period of time. In other cases, you might be allowed to have liquids until a short time before the procedure. Whether you need to fast, and for how long, depends on the procedure you are having.

●Lowering the risk of infection – You might need to wash the area with a special soap.

●What help you will need when you go home – For example, you might need to have someone else bring you home or stay with you for some time while you recover.

Ask the doctor or nurse if you have questions or if there is anything you do not understand.

What happens during rotator cuff repair? — 

When it is time for the procedure:

●You will get an "IV," which is a thin tube that goes into a vein. This can be used to give you fluids and medicines.

●You will get anesthesia medicines. This is to make sure that you do not feel pain during the procedure. Types of anesthesia include:

•Regional – This type of anesthesia blocks pain in 1 area of your body, such as an arm, a leg, or the lower half of your body. If you get regional anesthesia, you might be awake. Or you might get medicines to make you relax and feel sleepy, called "sedatives."

•General – This type of anesthesia makes you unconscious so you can't feel, see, or hear anything during the procedure. If you have general anesthesia, you might get a breathing tube to help you breathe.

●You might get medicines to help control pain after the procedure.

●The doctors and nurses will monitor your breathing, blood pressure, and heart rate during the procedure.

●This surgery can be done in 2 ways:

•Open surgery – During an open surgery, the doctor makes a cut, or "incision," in the skin. This lets them see directly inside the body when they do the surgery.

•Minimally invasive surgery – "Minimally invasive" surgery lets the doctor make smaller incisions in the skin. They insert long, thin tools through the incisions. One of the tools has a camera on the end, which sends pictures to a TV screen. The doctor can look at the screen to see inside the body. Then, they use the long tools to do the surgery.

You might be able to return to normal activities sooner if you had minimally invasive surgery than if you had an open surgery.

●The doctor will find the damaged tendons or muscles, and then repair them.

●The doctor will close your incisions and cover them with clean bandages.

What happens after rotator cuff repair? — 

After your procedure, you will be taken to a recovery room. The staff will watch you closely as your anesthesia wears off. Most people can go home the same day.

As you recover:

●You might feel groggy or confused for a short time. You might also feel nauseous or vomit. The doctor or nurse can give you medicine to help with this.

●If you had a breathing tube, you might have a sore throat. This usually gets better quickly.

●You might need to wear a sling or abduction pillow on the affected arm for several weeks after surgery (figure 2). This helps limit movement.

●The staff will help you get out of bed and start moving around when you are ready.

●You will get medicine if needed to help with pain. You might need other medicines, too.

●When you are ready to eat, you will start with clear liquids. Then, you can start eating as you are able. You might feel better if you start with bland foods.

What are the risks of rotator cuff repair? — 

Your doctor will talk to you about all of the possible risks, and answer your questions. Possible risks include:

●Bleeding

●Infection

●Nerve damage

●Stiffness

●Pain not going away

●The rotator cuff tearing again

●Arthritis

What else should I know? — 

Before you go home from the hospital, make sure that you know what problems to look out for and when you should call the doctor. Make sure that you understand your doctor's or nurse's instructions. Ask questions about anything you do not understand.

More on this topic

Patient education: Rotator cuff repair – Discharge instructions (The Basics)
Patient education: Rotator cuff injury (The Basics)
Patient education: Frozen shoulder (The Basics)
Patient education: Shoulder impingement (The Basics)

Patient education: Rotator cuff tendinitis and tear (Beyond the Basics)
Patient education: Frozen shoulder (Beyond the Basics)
Patient education: Shoulder impingement syndrome (Beyond the Basics)