The effectiveness of a newly developed reduction method of anterior shoulder dislocations; Sool's method

Nearly a dozen reduction methods for the treatment of anterior shoulder dislocation have been reported, but the majority are painful and require patients to be in the supine or prone position.

This retrospective cohort study was conducted in a university-affiliated emergency department (ED). Sool's method and traditional shoulder reduction methods (TSRMs) were performed for the patient with anterior shoulder dislocation. Fifty-nine eligible patients were recruited; 35 were treated with TSRMs, wherease 24 were treated with Sool's method.

The rate of successful reduction was 80% (26/35) in the TSRM group and 75% (18/24) in the Sool's method group (P=.75). The length of stay in the ED was 72.3minutes in the Sool's method group and 98.4minutes in the TSRM group (P=.037). No significant difference was observed between the neurovascular deficit before and after reduction in either group. The procedural time of successfully reduced cases in patients treated by Sool's method was shorter than that of the failed cases (P=.015).

Sool's method was as successful as other methods at reducing shoulder dislocation and has demonstrated encouraging results, including significant reduction in length of stay in the ED and unnecessary use of sedation. Sool's method is technically easy and requires only a place to sit and a single operator.