New Research Suggests That Surgeons Should Rethink a Common Practice

Research from Columbia University indicates that removing the bursa during rotator cuff surgery could impair healing, challenging the traditional view of the bursa as just a protective cushion. Removing the bursa during rotator cuff surgery may impair healing, as it plays a crucial role in tendon and bone health. Research suggests that surgeons should reconsider its removal and explore its use for drug delivery to improve repair outcomes.

A new study from orthopedic scientists and biomedical engineers at Columbia University suggests that a common method used by shoulder surgeons could be hindering the success of rotator cuff surgery. During the surgery, surgeons often remove a tissue called the bursa while repairing torn tendons in the shoulder joint, but the study suggests that the small tissue plays a role in helping the shoulder heal. “It is common to remove the bursa during shoulder surgery, even for the simple purpose of visualizing the rotator cuff,” says Stavros Thomopoulos, PhD, the study’s senior author and the Robert E.

Carroll and Jane Chace Carroll Laboratories Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons. “But we really don’t know the role of the bursa in rotator cuff disease, so we don’t know the full implications of removing it,” Thomopoulos says. “Our findings in an animal model indicate that surgeons should not remove the bursa without carefully considering the consequences.

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