(ii) Arthroscopic procedures for shoulder instability

Results of 45 arthroscopic Bankart procedures: Does the ISIS remain a reliable prognostic assessment after 5 years?

PURPOSE

The Instability Severity Index Score (ISIS) includes preoperative clinical and radiological risk factors to select patients who can benefit from an arthroscopic Bankart procedure with a low rate of recurrence. Patients who underwent an arthroscopic Bankart for anterior shoulder instability with an ISIS lower than or equal to four were assessed after a minimum of 5-year follow-up.

METHODS

Forty-five shoulders were assessed at a mean of 79 months (range 60-118 months). Average age was 29.4 years (range 17-58 years) at the time of surgery. Postoperative functions were assessed by the Walch and Duplay and the Rowe scores for 26 patients; an adapted telephonic interview was performed for the 19 remaining patients who could not be reassessed clinically. A failure was defined by the recurrence of an anterior dislocation or subluxation. Patients were asked whether they were finally very satisfied, satisfied or unhappy.

RESULTS

The mean Walch and Duplay score at last follow-up was 84.3 (range 35-100). The final result for these patients was excellent in 14 patients (53.8 %), good in seven cases (26.9 %), poor in three patients (11.5 %) and bad in two patients (7.7 %). The mean Rowe score was 82.6 (range 35-100). Thirty-nine patients (86.7 %) were subjectively very satisfied or satisfied, and six (13.3 %) were unhappy. Four patients (8.9 %) had a recurrence of frank dislocation with a mean delay of 34 months (range 12-72 months). Three of them had a Hill-Sachs lesion preoperatively. Two patients had a preoperative ISIS at 4 points and two patients at 3 points.

CONCLUSION

The selection based on the ISIS allows a low rate of failure after an average term of 5 years. Lowering the limit for indication to 3 points allows to avoid the association between two major risk factors for recurrence, which are valued at 2 points. The existence of a Hill-Sachs lesion is a stronger indicator for the outcome of instability repair.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level IV, Retrospective Case Series, Treatment Study.

Suture anchors are superior to transglenoid sutures in arthroscopic shoulder stabilization

PURPOSE

We retrospectively compared 2 groups of high-demand patients with post-traumatic anterior shoulder instability to determine whether arthroscopic stabilization was superior with transglenoid suture or suture anchors.

METHODS

In a retrospective comparative study we investigated the results of 246 high-demand patients, with post-traumatic anterior shoulder instability, who underwent arthroscopic capsulolabral reconstruction: 165 (mean age, 27.5 years; mean follow-up, 80 months) were evaluated after treatment with transglenoid sutures, and 81 (mean age, 26.6 years; mean follow-up, 27 months) were treated with suture anchors in a consecutive period. We compared both techniques with regard to recurrence rate, postoperative complications, range of motion, sport activity, work, and patient satisfaction.

RESULTS

In the anchor group recurrent dislocation after surgery occurred in 7 patients (8.7%), all within 18 months postoperatively. This finding was significantly (P = .009) better than that in the transglenoid group, in which recurrent postoperative dislocation occurred in 57 patients (34%), in a period of 0 to 115 months after surgery. Postoperative complications were seen in 4 of 81 patients in the suture anchor group, whereas a significantly (P = .01) higher rate was found in the transglenoid suture group, with 36 complications in 35 of 165 patients.

CONCLUSIONS

The data presented in this study suggest that the modern suture anchor technique results in a better outcome after shoulder stabilization, with fewer complications and lower recurrence rates, than the transglenoid repair. We conclude that the suture anchor technique should be a preferred method for arthroscopic shoulder stabilization surgery.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level III, retrospective, comparative therapeutic study.