Comparing postoperative proprioception of the glenohumeral joint between the open and the arthroscopic Latarjet procedure.

Background: Shoulder proprioception, in which the anterior glenohumeral capsule plays a major role, is critical to the functioning of the shoulder. Consequently, most surgeons either do not resect or reinsert the anterior capsule in shoulder stabilization surgery. In the original open Latarjet procedure (OLP), the anterior capsule is preserved. However, in the all-arthroscopic Latarjet procedure (ALP), complete anterior capsule resection is recommended for better view and access to the coracoid. This raises the question if there is a postoperative difference in proprioception between these 2 procedures. Therefore, the aims of this study are (1) to assess the difference in postoperative proprioception between the operated and healthy sides after the OLP and ALP and (2) to compare the difference in postoperative proprioception on the operated side between the OLP and ALP.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis including all patients who underwent a proprioception test after an OLP or ALP at our center. Collected baseline characteristics included sex, age at surgery, operated side, hand dominance, presence of a Hill-Sachs lesion, and time between surgery and the proprioception test. For the test, patients were positioned 1 meter from a wall. They were blindfolded and had to point at a target with a laser pointer taped to their index finger. The laser point was marked and the errors were measured horizontally and vertically and categorized as <4 cm, 4-8 cm, 8-16 cm, and >16 cm.

Results: Between April 2022 and April 2024, a total of 91 cases were identified, of which 24 underwent an OLP and 67 underwent an ALP. No significant difference was found in error distribution between the healthy and operated side after both the OLP (P = .30 horizontally, P = .67 vertically) and ALP (P = .20 horizontally, P = .34 vertically). Moreover, there was no significant difference in error distribution between the operated sides after the OLP vs. ALP (P = .52 horizontally; P = .61 vertically).

Conclusion: Our data suggest that postoperative proprioception is not significantly different between the operated and healthy sides after both the OLP and ALP, nor between the operated sides after the OLP vs. after the ALP. This might imply that completely resecting the anterior glenohumeral capsule does not have a detrimental effect on shoulder proprioception. However, these results are multifactorial and prospective studies are needed to better understand the regeneration potential of glenohumeral capsule mechanoreceptors and the importance of the anterior capsule for shoulder proprioception.