Abstract
The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of puming therapy for rotator cuff tears. We reviewed 15 patients treated by pumping therpy (pumping group). Another 15 patients were followed conservatively (conservative group), and 13 patients(medium or small rotator cuff tears) underwent a rotator cuff repairing procedure (repairing group). The clinical outcome of each case was evaluated at pretreatment and at follow-up, using the JOA scores and the improvement ratio of the JOA scores.
There was no statistical difference among the three groups in the avarage age. The period from start of each treatment to improvement of symptom was significantly shorter in the pumping group (4.1months) than that of the conservative group (6.3 months)(P<0.05). The total JOA score of the puming group changed from 31.3 (pretreatment) to 67.0 (at follow-up), whereas the changes of the scores in the conservative group and the repairing group were from 34.0 to 62.3, and from 34.0 to 70.6, respectively. The total score of the pumping group (at follow-up) was as same as that of the repairing group. The improvement ratios of the total JOA scores were 73.5(%) in the pumping group,61.9(%) in the conservative group, and 79.4(%) in the repairing group.
Although massive tears need repairing, we concluded that the pumping therapy may be a better choice of treatment than conservative therapy for medium or small rotator cuff tears. The maneuver of pumping enlarges the capsule of the shoulder joint and bursa gently. It may also improve the local circulation, and is effective in the improvement of pain, functional ability, and ROM.
