Eur J Anat, 24 (6): 459-465 (2020)

The prevalence of acromial spurs in relation to study type and specimens examined

Abdulrahman Alraddadi^1,2, Abduelmenem Alashkham^1,3, Clare Lamb1, Roger Soames¹

¹Centre for Anatomy and Human Identification, School of Science and Engineering, University of Dundee, Dundee, UK²Basic Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia³Centre for Anatomy, School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom

ABSTRACT Advanced cases of subacromial impingement syndrome usually present with acromial spurs. However, previous studies have reported varia-tions in the prevalence of acromial spurs in shoul-ders with or without subacromial impingement syn-drome as well as with age, sex, and side. There-fore, this study is aimed at investigating the preva-lence of acromial spurs in cadaveric shoulders and reviewing the factors leading to the reported varia-ble frequencies. The study examined 220 cadaver-ic shoulders (110 male and 110 female), with a median age of 82 years (with a range of 53 to 102 years). In 155 shoulders, the rotator cuff tendons were evaluated for tears; acromial spurs were ob-served in 95 shoulders (43%). No significant asso-ciation was observed between the prevalence of acromial spurs and sex or side. However, a signifi-cant prevalence of spurs (57%) was observed in the oldest-old group, aged ≥ 85 years. Those with acromial spurs also tended to be older (84 years) than those without spurs (81 years). A significant difference in the prevalence of acromial spurs was observed in shoulders with rotator cuff tears com-pared to those without them: 80% compared to 20%, respectively. Analysis showed a significantnumber of acromial spurs in shoulders with full-thickness tears (46%) and partial tears (34%). A significant prevalence of acromial spurs was found in shoulders with rotator cuff tears, as well as in aged shoulders. In relevant literature, the preva-lence of acromial spurs varies with the type of study undertaken, age, prevalence of rotator cuff tears, and type of radiograph examined.

Keywords: Acromial spur â?? Shoulder â?? Shoulder degenerative changes â?? Rotator cuff tears â?? Subacromial impingement syndrome â?? Shoulder pain