Rotator cuff injury/ tear is the most common clinical shoulder disease in orthopaedics and rehabilitation. Rehabilitation of rotator cuff and scapular band, especially after surgery, plays a crucial role in improving shoulder function, pain and quality of life. However, there are still many unsolved research topics of rotator cuff rehabilitation, which need to be further understood and strengthened. Objective To analyze the hotspots and cutting-edge trends with bibliometrics and visualization techniques in the field of rotator cuff rehabilitation to provide references for researchers.

Based on Web of Science core collections, the relevant researches in the field of rotator cuff rehabilitation published in 2011-2020 was retrieved with the subject terms "rotator cuff AND rehabilitation" . Using the function of "creating citation reports" and "analyzing retrieval results" provided by Web of Science, as well as the knowledge map drawing function of CiteSpace software, the retrieved literature was scientifically measured and visualized according to nations and regions, research institutions, authors, keywords, references, etc.

A total of 614 related studies in the field of rotator cuff rehabilitation were retrieved. The number of studies and citations increased year by year. Most of the top countries and research institutions came from the United States, Europe, Australia, Canada and South Korea, etc. Based on the identification of keywords by CiteSpace and in combination with the retrieval of the major cited references where the keywords are located, the hotspots and frontiers of researches can be more accurately identified and detected. The research design of the key node literature in this study is mainly based on randomized controlled trials and systematic reviews or meta-analysis that can provide high quality medical evidence. Here are some of the current research topics of greater concern which may represent the current global trend of key themes in rotator cuff rehabilitation research: (1) assessments and rehabilitation strategies of ROM of glenohumeral joint, acromiohumeral distance (AHD) , trapezius muscle and scapular movement, isokinetic motion test of internal/external rotator cuff, and Western Ontario rotator cuff index (WORC) ; (2) techniques of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and its derivatives, and Kinesiotaping (KT) technique; (3) surgical procedures and conservative /rehabilitation treatment options for rotator cuff tear (RCT) , early or delayed postoperative rehabilitation, efficacy of postoperative exercise rehabilitation strategies, and application of shoulder symptom modification procedures (SSMP) ; (4) autografts/allografts and superior joint capsule reconstruction for treatment of massive rotator cuff tears; (5) pathogenesis and rehabilitation of subacromial pain syndrome (SAPS) , basic study of intra-tendon and tendon-bone healing, influencing factors of rotator cuff healing, and tendon retraction and recurrent defects after rotator cuff repair; (6) pain mechanism and pain management strategies of central sensitization and cortical involvement, and role of psychological and social factors in shoulder pain.

As the data of this study is retrieved from a single database of Web of Science core collections, the results in this study can not cover all the latest research topics of rotator cuff rehabilitation at present, but still can provide some inspiration and guidance for RCT rehabilitation research, and strengthen the international cooperation between countries, regions or research institutions.