Early postoperative pain as a risk factor of shoulder stiffness after arthroscopic rotator cuff repair

Background: The role of postoperative pain in incidence of shoulder stiffness (SS) after shoulder arthroscopy has not been thoroughly investigated. The present study was conducted to assess the effects of early postoperative pain (EPOP) on onset of SS after arthroscopic rotator cuff (RC) repair. Materials and methods: In a retrospective analysis of a prospectively collected database, 335 patients who underwent arthroscopic RC repair were evaluated. RC tendons were sutured to the bone using the double-row technique. EPOP was evaluated 1 week after surgery using the visual analog scale (VAS). SS was assessed 3 months after surgery and was categorized into moderate or severe based on shoulder range of motion (ROM). Each type of complication including SS was identified and recorded. Results: Postoperative shoulder stiffness (POSS) was identified in 121 patients (36.2) that was moderate in 86 patients (70.1) and severe in 35 patients (28.9). After 1 week, VAS pain score was equal to 7.7 ± 3.1 and 4.5 ± 2.1 in the patients with and without stiffness, respectively (p < 0.001). Diabetes and traumatic tear were found to be associated with postoperative stiffness (p = 0.046 and p < 0.001, respectively). Similar associations were found on multivariate analysis of data. VAS pain score was higher in the patients with severe stiffness compared with those with moderate stiffness (p < 0.001). Conclusions: Our findings revealed that EPOP is associated with shoulder stiffness after arthroscopic RC repair. Therefore, strategies to ameliorate EPOP could be opted to decrease rate of POSS. Level of evidence: Level IV © 2021, The Author(s)