Partial-thickness rotator cuff tears

Our understanding of the spectrum of rotator cuff disease continues to improve as imaging modalities and treatment techniques become more refined. The original ideas and contributions provided by Codman10 and Neer47,48 continue to inform our understanding. Unfortunately, high-quality data on the management of partial-thickness rotator cuff tears are relatively lacking in the literature when compared with those available on full-thickness tears. This is particularly important because the estimated prevalence of partial-thickness rotator cuff tears is significant and can be expected to increase in light of our aging population and the association between increasing age and rotator cuff pathology.