Incidence and Risk Factors of the Complications Related to the Latarjet Surgery

Objective  The Latarjet procedure is a well-accepted treatment of shoulder instability. This technique is associated with a unique set of complications with overall rates of up to 30%. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the incidence and risk factors associated with complications after open Latarjet procedure. Methods  We retrospectively reviewed 102 patients submitted to open Latarjet procedure. Complications were divided into three types: clinical; graft-related; and screw-related. All of the patients were submitted to radiography and computed tomography (CT). The risk factors analyzed were gender, age, previous surgery, epilepsy, experience of the surgeon. Results  A total of 102 consecutive patients (108 cases) underwent the Latarjet procedure. The mean age was 33.7 years old (18 to 61 years old), with 88 males and 14 females. The overall complication rate was 21.2%, being 12% clinical-related, 7.4% graft-related, and 2.7% screw-related. The most frequent were anterior apprehension (eight cases) and lateral overhang of the graft in six patients. Computed tomography scan at a minimum of 6 months was performed in 79 cases (73%), and graft union occurred in 75 patients (94.9%). There were no cases of instability in the remaining four cases of nonunion. Ten patients (9.2%) required revision surgery. The risk factors associated with complications were epilepsy ( p  = 0.0325), experience of the surgeon ( p  = 0.0499) and patients ≥ 40 years old at the time of the surgery ( p  = 0.0151). There was no correlation with gender and previous surgery. Conclusion  The complication rate following the Latarjet procedure was 21.2%, with 9% requiring revision surgery. Epilepsy, age > 40 years old and experience of the surgeon were risk factors.