What is a shoulder dislocation?
Shoulder dislocation is a painful and debilitating injury in which the ball of the shoulder joint comes out of its socket due to trauma. The dislocation may sometimes be reduced by itself, but mostly, the patient has to visit a hospital to get it reduced.
Are there different types of shoulder dislocation?
There are different types of dislocations depending on the direction in which the ball comes out. The most common form is an anterior dislocation in which the ball comes out in the front. There are some patients who have an increased generalised laxity of their joints by birth, and because of this, they develop instability of their shoulder joint in multiple directions (multi directional instability)
Can the injury heal by itself after 1st dislocation? Can I avoid surgery?
In young adults, after the first episode of a shoulder dislocation, there are some chances (about 20 to 40%) that the injury may heal by itself and the patient may not have any further episodes of dislocation. The patient will require a short period of immobilisation followed by proper rehabilitation. However, the majority of young adults tend to have repeated episodes of shoulder dislocation over time. Because of this, if the patient is a competitive sportsperson, surgery may be required even after the first episode. Please contact your treating arthroscopic surgeon to understand the best possible treatment option in your particular case so that you can make an informed decision.
When is surgery required for shoulder dislocation?
In some injury patterns, for example, those associated with a large fracture of the bones forming the shoulder joint, early surgery may be required. Your treating doctor will assess your shoulder as well as your radiology scans and, based on your activity level, job requirements, age etc, will be able to guide you further. Two or more episodes of shoulder dislocation generally require surgery. Treatment may differ in cases of multi-directional instability.
What are the various surgeries that are done for shoulder dislocation?
Please contact your treating arthroscopic surgeon to understand the best possible treatment option in your particular case. In general, whenever the ball of the shoulder joint comes out of its socket, it does so by tearing a bumper in front of the joint or by fracturing a piece of bone. Crater-like bone defects may also form in the ball of the joint. Some patients may only require repair of the bumper, which is done through keyhole surgery (Arthroscopic Bankart Repair) by an arthroscopic surgeon. Some patients may require additional procedures to cover the crater defect, which can be done through keyhole surgery by an experienced arthroscopic surgeon. Others with large bone defects may require bony procedures, either in isolation or with bumper repair. These may be performed with an open incision, or if your arthroscopic surgeon is well experienced, then these may also be done through keyhole surgery. The various surgeries that may be required include bone block surgery, dynamic anterior stabilisation (DAS procedure), Latarjet procedure, etc. The best surgical treatment required in a given patient can only be determined by your treating surgeon after thorough evaluation of the patient including various radiological investigations, and after discussion with the patient.
What are the risks involved in the surgery? What are the chances that the shoulder will not dislocate again after surgery?
Current surgical options in experienced hands give very good results with low rates of recurrence of dislocation. Please contact your treating arthroscopic surgeon to understand the best available options in your case and their risks and success rates. It is important for patients to work closely with their surgeon to make an informed decision regarding their treatment plan tailored to their specific needs.
