Arthroscopic Bankart repair of anterior detachments of the glenoid labrum. A prospective study.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the results of an arthroscopic transglenoid suture-stabilization procedure in athletically active patients who had recurrent, unilateral, unidirectional anterior dislocations of the shoulder and an isolated anterior detachment of the glenoid labrum.

METHODS: Forty-one patients who had unilateral, unidirectional anterior dislocations of the shoulder and an isolated anterior detachment of the glenoid labrum were managed with arthroscopic repair. All patients were athletic, and seventeen of the male patients were football players. No patient had inferior or posterior laxity or a posterior detachment. The sutures were anchored to the posterior aspect of the scapula, and the knots were tied anteriorly to secure the detached region of the labrum and the inferior glenohumeral ligament to the anterior aspect of the scapula. The mean duration of follow-up was fifty-two months (range, twenty-five months to seven years). The patients were evaluated annually with a physical examination, radiographs, isokinetic strength-testing, the modified shoulder-rating scale of Rowe and Zarins, and the scoring system of the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons.

RESULTS: Forty (98 percent) of the forty-one athletes returned to their preoperative sport postoperatively. Thirty-nine patients (95 percent) had no additional dislocations or subluxations, and two (5 percent), both of whom were football players, had a single episode of subluxation. Thirty-seven patients (90 percent) had a score of at least 80 points on the scale of Rowe and Zarins, and thirty-four (83 percent) had a score of at least 90 points. Thirty-nine patients (95 percent) had a score of at least 80 points on the scale of the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons, and twenty-five (61 percent) had a score of at least 90 points. Lower scores were associated with loose bodies seen on arthroscopy (p = 0.001), osseous lesions seen on postoperative radiographs (p = 0.036), and subluxation (p = 0.000). Twenty-two shoulders (54 percent) had a full range of motion in all planes, and eighteen (44 percent) had no strength deficit in any position on isokinetic testing. With the numbers available for study, no significant association was found between the presence of a Hill-Sachs or an osseous Bankart lesion on preoperative radiographs and the overall score on the scale of Rowe and Zarins or the scale of the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons; however, there was a significant association between the range of motion and an osseous Bankart lesion on preoperative radiographs (p = 0.002) and between decreased strength on isokinetic testing and a Hill-Sachs lesion on preoperative radiographs and an osseous lesion on postoperative radiographs (p = 0.022). There also was a significant association between a decreased range of motion (p < 0.002) and decreased strength (p = 0.014) and the arthroscopic finding of loose bodies. Muscle strength also was affected by arm dominance and the number of preoperative dislocations.

CONCLUSIONS: Arthroscopic transglenoid repair of isolated anterior labral detachments restored stability of the shoulder and led to a favorable outcome in thirty-nine (95 percent) of the forty-one athletes. Only the two football players who had postoperative subluxation had a score of less than 80 points according to the scale of the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons.