Patients with symptomatic tears of the rotator cuff are usually offered surgical repair of the tendon tear(s).  Tendon healing to bone is a biologic principle that, to date, cannot be accelerated with any medication, stem cell injection, or other treatment adjunct.  Clinical trials in humans as well as lab studies in animals show consistent findings:  the rotator cuff is not securely attached at the repair site until 6 months after surgery.  The return of strength of the repaired rotator cuff can take as long as 15 months to normalize, but most patients achieve 80-90% of their strength by 9 months postoperative.  The majority (>90%) of patients are able to return to their pre-injury work duties by 6 months.  Depending on the work or sports activities, such as a professional baseball pitcher, it may be more like 12 months for a complete recovery and a return to pitching.