PROSPECTIVE ANALYSIS OF ARTHROSCOPIC ANTERIOR SHOULDER INSTABILITY REPAIRS INVOLVING A BANKART LESION.

Abstract

To prospectively evaluate patient outcome in terms of stability, function and satisfaction following an arthroscopic anterior Bankart repair in order to identify patient characteristics, surgical technique or instrumentation linked to poor outcomes. These findings can then be used to refine selection criteria such that patient benefit from the shoulder instability repair is maximised.

Between April 2002 and June 2004 thirty-seven arthroscopic anterior Bankart lesion repairs were performed by a single orthopaedic surgeon. Data on concomitant shoulder pathology, surgical technique utilised and instrumentation used was recorded for each patient. Reoccurrence rate, patient satisfaction and range of motion were evaluated pre-operatively, and then six weeks, three months, six months, twelve months and twenty-four months post-operatively.

Four of thirty-seven patients (10.8%) experienced at least one post-operative reoccurrence defined as a subluxation or dislocation. There was a statistically significant association between the presence of an inverted pear-shaped glenoid and increased incidence of reoccurrence (p < 0.05). Patients’ satisfaction with their shoulders increased significantly from 43% pre-operatively to 71% at the two-year follow-up, as measured by the Western Ontario Shoulder Instability (WOSI) scale. There were no significant differences in range of motion between the patients’ surgically repaired and unaffected shoulders.

An arthroscopic repair of an anterior Bankart lesion can yield good-to-excellent results for the majority of patients with respect to stability, function and satisfaction. The presence an inverted pear-shaped glenoid is mostly strongly correlated with an increased incidence of reoccurrence. Patients should be screened pre-operatively to identify this bony abnormality such that it can be addressed appropriately during surgery.