Full thickness and full width cuff tear! Its a big one!

A full thickness, full width tear of supraspinatus, and every secondary sign that tells you it's there before you've even looked at the tendon. In this real patient case, Chris Myers walks through the shoulder ultrasound scan of a man who had lived with this tear for six years. You'll learn the four classic secondary signs of a rotator cuff tear: • Fluid around the long head of biceps (and why it's usually not a biceps problem) • The "baggy bursa": subacromial bursal fluid sitting further distally than it should • Cortical irregularity at the greater tuberosity footprint • Flattening of the bursal plane (the bursal sag sign) in place of the normal rainbow view Plus how to classify a tear properly (full thickness vs partial thickness; articular-sided, intratendinous or bursal-sided), how to assess tear width (this one measured 1.8cm and extends into infraspinatus), and why you should always check the rotator cable: it's a big part of why this patient still had almost full range of movement six years on. If you see the secondary signs and can't find a tear, look again. You've probably missed it. 📚 REFERENCE PAPERS If you'd like to explore the anatomy of the rotator interval and rotator cuff in more detail, these papers are well worth reading. They cover the anatomy, biomechanics and evolving concepts that underpin our understanding of rotator cuff tears and their appearance on ultrasound. • Revisiting the Anatomy of the Rotator Cuff Relevant to Rotator Cuff Injury https://www.researchgate.net/publicat... • Tendons, Ligaments, and Capsule of the Rotator Cuff https://journals.lww.com/jbjsjournal/... • Rotator Interval: Anatomy and Clinical Significance https://www.thieme-connect.com/produc... • Evolving Concepts in the Rotator Cuff Footprint https://www.researchgate.net/publicat... 🎓 LEARN MSK ULTRASOUND WITH SMUG Hands-on musculoskeletal ultrasound courses for physiotherapists, sports medicine doctors and clinicians: https://www.ultrasoundtraining.co.uk Subscribe for weekly scan walkthroughs, real pathology and practical reporting tips. Coming next: the rotator cable, the key structure that decides whether a patient copes with a cuff tear, covered in its own anatomy video. #MSKUltrasound #RotatorCuff #ShoulderUltrasound #Physiotherapy #SportsMedicine