Editorial Commentary : May the Force Be With You—Preoperative Strength Is the Rotator Cuff Retear Predictor We Can Actually Train

Abstract

Predicting the clinical course of rotator cuff repairs is one of the most significant and unresolved challenges in shoulder surgery. Most established predictors of retear (e.g., advanced age, fatty infiltration, large tear size, and tendon retraction) are nonmodifiable—already set prior to the time the patient arrives in the operating room. Preoperative shoulder strength, measured as a side‐to‐side deficit on handheld dynamometry, warrants a larger role in discussions of rotator cuff repair outcomes. It is a practical metric (inexpensive, fast, and clinically accessible), and importantly, there is suggestion that shoulder strength may stand as a modifiable predictor of retear. When it comes to predicting rotator cuff healing, may the Force be with you.