The relationship between rotator cuff tears and anatomical structures in the shoulder and neck region

Objective: Rotator cuff pathologies are the most common cause of shoulder pain. We think that one of the underlying causes of shoulder pain may be related to pathologies in the neck region. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to evaluate the anatomical structures of the cervical spine and shoulder joint and the possible pathologies of these regions in patients admitted to hospital with shoulder pain. Method: Retrospective screening method was used in our study. MR images of all patients who were admitted to the Orthopedics Clinic of Antalya Atatürk Public Hospital with the complaint of shoulder pain between 2017 and 2019 with the diagnosis of "M25.51-Pain in the joint, shoulder region" entered from the Hospital Management Information System were retrospectively analyzed. 618 patients were included in the study. Age, gender, shoulder and cervical pathologies of the scanned patients were recorded in an excel program. The relationship between these pathologies was analyzed. Results: In 13% (n=83) of the patients included in our study, both shoulder pathology and neck pathology and a statistically significant relationship between these pathologies were found. The most common pathology in the neck region was found to be "annular bulging". There was no difference in pathologies in terms of gender. According to rotator cuff tear types, the most common tear type in both men and women was "supraspinatus partial tear bursal side" in supraspinatus tear type and "infraspinatus partial tear" in infraspinatus tear type. When shoulder pathologies were analyzed, more shoulder pathologies were seen in women than in men. The most common shoulder pathologies in women were "acromion type 2" and "subcoracoid effusion", while the most common shoulder pathologies in men were "subcoracoid effusion" and "ac joint arthrosis". Conclusion: The results of our study showed that patients presenting to our outpatient clinic with only shoulder pain may also have cervical region pathologies. We think that cervical region examination should be evaluated carefully and in detail in clinical evaluation. Key words: Shoulder pain, Neck pain, Rotator cuff, Cervical spine