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Use of PRP did not result in better clinical outcomes in rotator cuff repair
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Patients who underwent rotator cuff repair using platelet-rich plasma prepared by apheresis and applied in the liquid state with thrombin did not experience better clinical results, according to results of a prospective, double-blind study.
Researchers randomly assigned 27 patients with rotator cuff tear to the platelet-rich plasma (PRP) group and 27 patients to a control group. All patients with complete supraspinatus tears with retraction of less than 3 cm underwent arthroscopic single-row repair. Patients in the PRP group received liquid PRP prepared by apheresis with autologous thrombin at the end of the surgical procedure. The researchers assessed outcomes by the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) and Constant scales, VAS for pain and MRI before surgery and at 3, 6, 12 and 24 months after surgery.
Overall, both the PRP and control groups exhibited significant clinical improvement, according to the researchers. Results showed an increase in the mean UCLA score from 13.63 to 32.7 in the control group and from 13.93 to 32.44 in the PRP group between the preoperative assessment and 24-month follow-up.
The researchers also found an increase in the mean Constant score from 47.37 to 85.15 in the control group and from 46.96 to 84.78 in the PRP group. In the control group, the mean VAS score varied from 7 before surgery to 1.15 at the 24-month assessment, whereas VAS score varied from 6.67 before surgery to 0.96 at the 24-month assessment in the PRP group.
Study results showed the mean UCLA score at 12 months was the only difference between groups, with a score of 30.04 in the control group and 32.30 in the PRP group. The researchers found one case of a complete retear and four partial retears in the control group compared with two cases of partial retears in the PRP group.
Disclosure: The authors have no relevant financial disclosures.
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