Small rotator cuff tear: MRI image of a small rotator tuff tear in the shoulder. The bottom arrow indicates the bone (humerus). The top arrow indicates deltoid muscle and tendon. The middle arrow indicates a white fluid signal in the rotator cuff, indicative of a small rotator cuff tear. Such a tear would not be suitable for surgery.

Ultrasound image of a right shoulder rotator cuff tear. The tear appears black (arrow), while healthy tendon appears grey, and bone is white.

Ultrasound image of a small rotator cuff tear in the shoulder undergoing PRP treatment. The tendon appears gray and the bone (running left to right under the arrowhead) white in the image. The needle (seen at a 45 degree angle to the top right from the arrowhead) tip is directly at the tear site, which appears white, in the dark area in the cuff, which is the tear.

An ultrasound image of a PRP injection into a torn rotator cuff (arrow). The tendon appears gray and the bone white at the bottom of the image. The needle (seen at a 45 degree angle to the top right from the arrowhead) is injecting PRP, which appears white, filling the tear.