Rotator Cuff Injury and Repair
Rotator cuff disease is the most common cause of shoulder pain and dysfunction in adults. Common injuries to the rotator cuff include tendon tears (from a traumatic event) or overuse tendon injuries (from repetitive motion or loading). Utilizing cadaveric shoulders and animal models of tendon injury, our laboratory uses biomechanical, histological, organizational and biological assays, as well as medical imaging techniques, to study rotator cuff injury and repair. In addition, current projects aim to evaluate shoulder healing when tendon is repaired with the aid of a biologic or synthetic graft. Specific, ongoing research in this area includes the following:-
Animal Models of Tendon Injury and Repair
- Determining the Etiology of Rotator Cuff Tendinitis/Tendinosis
- Etiologic Factors for Tendon Degeneration
- Transcriptional Profiling of Tissue from a Rat Tendon Overuse Model
- Injury and Repair of the Rotator Cuff Tendon Insertion Site
- Rotator Cuff Tendon Strain using Texture Correlation and MRI
- Small Intestine Submucosa (SIS) as a Tissue Engineering Graft for Treatment of Chronic Rotator Cuff Tears
- Evaluation of Scaffolds in a Rat Model of Rotator Cuff Repair
Non-invasive Rotator Cuff Tendon Evaluation
Graft-aided Tendon Repair