Proximal humerus osteolysis after revision rotator cuff repair with bioabsorbable suture anchors

Biodegradable anchors were designed to provide secure fixation while allowing for later resorption and replacement by host tissue. First-generation implants degraded relatively rapidly and caused foreign-body reactions, synovitis, fragmentation, and osteolysis. Newer implants have similar complications. It is not known if the primary cause of the osteolysis is biological (precipitated by breakdown products of the polymer) or mechanical (caused by initial loss of implant stability). Case reports have described glenoid osteolysis around biodegradable suture anchor placement for shoulder stabilization, but up until now, to our knowledge, only 1 case of proximal humerus osteolysis has been reported for these implants. Here we describe a semicrystalline, poly-L-lactic acid bioabsorbable suture anchor failure after revision rotator cuff repair with subsequent humeral tuberosity osteolysis.