Rotator-cuff tear of the hip

Abstract

We describe an apparently unreported finding during hip operations: a tear at the insertion of gluteus medius and gluteus minimus. This defect may well be known to many surgeons with experience of hip replacement and hemiarthroplasty for fractures of the neck of the femur, but a Medline search has failed to find a previous description. We made a prospective study of 50 consecutive patients with fractures of the neck of the femur to quantify the incidence of this condition: 11 (22%) had such a tear.

Abductor Tendons and Muscles Assessed at MR Imaging after Total Hip Arthroplasty in Asymptomatic and Symptomatic Patients

“…Besides the frequently encountered trochanteric bursitis, there may also be socalled rotator cuff tears of the hip (18,19). Bunker and co-workers (19) described the typical appearance of this tear as a circular or oval gluteus minimus tendon defect that extends posteriorly into the lateral part of the gluteus medius tendon. MR imaging has been reported to be useful for the diagnosis of either tendinosis or tendon tears of the abductors (20,21).…”

A rare case of traumatic rupture of gluteus medius and literature review

“…A prospective study by Bunker et al puts the incidence of gluteus medius and minimus tears at 22% in patients with fractured neck of femurs [1]. The average age in the study group was 83.5 years.…”

“…In fact, the earliest documentation of these tears was as late as 1997 [1]. The pathophysiology is not fully understood but has been attributed to a progressive, degenerative, ageing process similar to that found in rotator cuff tears in the shoulder [2][3][4][5][6][7].…”

“…Early reports were based on intra-operative observations at the time of fractured neck of femur surgery and total hip arthroplasty [1]. The significance of these findings was initially uncertain.…”

Rehabilitation of Non-Operative Hip Conditions

“…Commonalities have been found between the shoulder and the hip joints due to the underlying ball and socket structural similarities. Parallels in the soft tissue structures have been reported comparing the gluteus medius tendons to the rotator cuff tendons as both tissues function as abductors and external rotators [9][10][11]. Injury to these structures can be commonly insidious and degenerative in nature [9,12].…”