Arthroscopic transglenoid suture repair for initial anterior shoulder dislocation

To evaluate the long-term results after arthroscopic transglenoid suture repair for initial anterior shoulder dislocation. TYPE OF SYUDY: Outcome study.

Selection for surgery was based on the sporting ambitions of the patients and the documentation of instability. Evidence of instability included the sonographic documentation of ventral drawer compared with the unaffected opposite shoulder as well as instability testing under anesthesia. Patients with preoperatively stable shoulder or multidirectional instability underwent conservative therapy. All patients underwent surgical repair with a transglenoid suture technique, initially using a single drill hole; in recent years, however, we have used 2 drill holes placed in the 3 o'clock and 5 o'clock positions. Postoperative care was initiated with 4-week immobilization in a Gilchrist bandage. Subsequently, physiotherapeutic mobilization was started, avoiding rotational movements for the first 3 weeks. In the period between 1988 and 1995, 72 patients with traumatic first-time dislocation underwent arthroscopic stabilization at the Department of Trauma Surgery of the Krankenhaus der Barmherzigen Brüder Eisenstadt. The patients included 61 men and 11 women with an average age of 27.2 years (range, 19 to 39 years).

The clinical instability documented showed a significant correlation to the instability found under anesthesia that was documented immediately before arthroscopic exploration. Arthroscopic exploration revealed a Bankart lesion in 25 cases (34.7%), with a small bone fragment found in 6 of these cases. Forty-three patients showed an avulsion of the capsulolabral complex displaced medially to the neck of the scapula, combined with a bucket-handle lesion of the superior anteroposterior labrum in 12 of these cases. Sixty-seven patients (93%) were available for clinical follow-up after an median of 66 months (range, 24 to 108 months) with patients achieving an average 91.3 points in the Carter-Rowe score. Five of the patients (6.9%) (average age, 20.4 years) experienced postoperative redislocation after 3 to 11 months being the result of an adequate trauma in 2 of the patients. All patients with redislocation had originally presented with a Bankart lesion, with medially displaced capsulolabral complex combined with a bucket-handle lesion of the proximal labrum in 2 patients. Eighty-five percent of the patients have resumed full sporting activity and presently have full load-bearing capacity of the operated shoulder.

Compared with the poor results after conservative therapy with recurrence rates of up to 90% for young, athletically active patients, arthroscopic treatment has been shown to be highly efficient.