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Updated: Jun 27, 2026
Reverse Total Shoulder Arthroplasty
Published on: July 5, 2011
Chin-up-induced bilateral anterior shoulder dislocation: a case report
Howard Felderman1, Richard Shih, Victor Maroun
1Department of Emergency Medicine, Morristown Memorial Hospital, 100 Madison Avenue, Box 8, Morristown, NJ 07962-1965, USA.
Background:
Simultaneous bilateral shoulder dislocations are extremely rare occurrences.
Objective:
We present an unusual case where the patient suffered simultaneous bilateral anterior shoulder dislocations during chin-up exercises. To our knowledge, this mechanism has not been previously reported.
Case Report:
A 44-year-old woman presented to the Emergency Department (ED) complaining of bilateral shoulder pain while doing chin-up exercises. She was completing her workout when she developed severe pain to both of her shoulders with associated parasthesias to both hands and the right forearm. The patient was found to have bilateral anterior shoulder dislocations; both were reduced using procedural sedation and traction-countertraction techniques.
Conclusion:
The mechanics of chin-up exercises places the glenohumeral joint in a position of instability, increasing the likelihood of dislocation.