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This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 36/5/987    most recent 0363546508317344v1 Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Google Scholar Articles by Nho, S. J. Articles by MacGillivray, J. D. PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Nho, S. J. Articles by MacGillivray, J. D. Related Collections Degenerative Joint Disease Shoulder

Rotator Cuff Degeneration

Etiology and Pathogenesis

From the Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, New York

^* Address correspondence to Shane J. Nho, The Hospital for Special Surgery, 535 East 70th Street, York, NY 10021 (e-mail: nhos{at}hss.edu).

By virtue of its anatomy and function, the rotator cuff is vulnerable to considerable morbidity, often necessitating surgical intervention. How we intervene is governed by our understanding of the pathological mechanisms in cuff disease. These factors can be divided into those extrinsic to the rotator cuff (impingement, demographic factors) and those intrinsic to the cuff (age-related degeneration, hypovascularity, inflammation, and oxidative stress, among others). In an era where biologic interventions are increasingly being investigated, our understanding of these mechanisms is likely to become more important in designing effective new interventions. Here we present a literature review summarizing our current understanding of the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying rotator cuff degeneration.

Key Words: rotator cuff tears • rotator cuff degeneration • degenerative microtrauma