1. A series of twenty-three compression arthrodeses of the shoulder are reviewed.

2. The review demonstrates compression arthrodesis to be an excellent method of obtaining bony fusion of the shoulder.

3. The consistent success in achieving arthrodesis, in what is to be considered a difficult joint to fuse, is significant in the theory of compression arthrodesis, because the shoulder offers a more perfect example of compression arthrodesis than the knee in that the element of absolute fixation is less obvious.