Proprioception of the Shoulder Joint After Surgical Repair for Instability

• Published in: The American journal of sports medicine 2004-03, Vol.32 (2), p.425
• Main Authors: Wolfgang Pötzl, Lothar Thorwesten, Christian Götze, Stefan Garmann, Jörn Steinbeck
• Format: Article
• Language: eng ; jpn
• ISSN: 0363-5465; 1552-3365
• DOI: 10.1177/0363546503261719

Background: Proprioceptive capabilities play an important role in stability of the shoulder joint. Hypothesis: Decreased proprioceptive capabilities can improve by surgical repair of shoulder instability. Study Design: Prospective long-term study. Methods: The proprioceptive capabilities of 14 patients with recurrent anterior shoulder instability were examined preoperative and with a minimum follow-up of 5 years postoperative using the angle reproduction test. The patients’ data were compared to a healthy control group. Results: The joint position sense improved significantly in abduction, flexion, and rotation ( P < .05). The preoperative difference from the target joint position was 9.3° (SD, 4.6°) for the summarized positions in abduction, 9.1° (SD, 4.5°) in flexion, and 10.1° (SD, 5.1°) in rotation. Postoperatively, it improved to 5.6° (SD, 2.9°) in abduction, 5.6° (SD, 2.7°) in flexion, and 5.0° (SD, 1.8°) in rotation. The joint position sense of the uninvolved contralateral shoulder improved too. Conclusions: Five years after surgical repair for shoulder instability, the joint position sense improved significantly, to a level of normal, healthy shoulders. Keywords: proprioception shoulder instability Bankart repair angle reproduction test