Multiple Cultures and Extended Incubation for Upper Extremity Revision Arthroplasty Affect Clinical Care: A Cohort Study.

Unlabelled: Skin flora organisms (SFOs) isolated from 1 to 2 tissue samples during shoulder and elbow revision arthroplasty are difficult to distinguish as contamination or infection. We examined the change in clinical care after implementation of an Arthroplasty Infection Protocol by increasing the number of intraoperative samples held for 10-day incubation to a minimum of 5.

Methods: Infection was defined as ≥3 cultures growing the same SFO or any one culture growing any other virulent organism.

Management of glenohumeral arthritis in the young adult.

The majority of cases of glenohumeral arthritis in older adults are primary osteoarthritis and treatment algorithms are well defined, with shoulder arthroplasty providing reliable pain relief and functional improvement of satisfactorily duration. In younger adults, however, diagnoses are more complex and arthroplasty outcomes are less durable. Arthroscopy may be useful both as a diagnostic tool for characterizing lesions and as a therapeutic tool for debridement.

Contact pressure and glenohumeral translation following subacromial decompression: how much is enough?

Subacromial decompression is a common surgical procedure that has historically included coracoacromial ligament resection. However, recent reports have advocated preserving the coracoacromial ligament to avoid the potential complication of anterosuperior escape. The optimal subacromial decompression would achieve a smooth coracoacromial arch and decreased rotator cuff contact pressures while preserving the function of the arch in glenohumeral stability.

Shoulder arthroplasty in cases with avascular necrosis of the humeral head.

Avascular necrosis (AVN) is a relatively uncommon cause of glenohumeral arthritis. Previous retrospective reviews of shoulder arthroplasty for AVN have shown very good results in small numbers of patients. This study prospectively evaluated a consecutive series of 21 shoulders in 19 patients treated with the same modular prosthesis at a single institution.

A prospective functional outcome study of shoulder arthroplasty for osteoarthritis with an intact rotator cuff.

Prospective pain relief and functional outcome data were obtained on 65 shoulder arthroplasties in 55 patients. Thirty-seven total shoulder arthroplasties (TSAs) and twenty-eight hemiarthroplasties were followed up for a mean of 4.3 years (range, 2-8 years).