Studying Edema Formation After Release of the Infraspinatus Muscle as an Experimental Model of Rotator Cuff Lesions in Sheep: A Histological Analysis.

This study illustrates that early edema formation and inflammation elicit muscle fiber degeneration that precedes fatty infiltration. Should this phenomenon be applicable to human traumatic rotator cuff tears, then surgery should be performed as soon as possible, ideally within the first 21 days after injury.