Four papers in Melbourne
Dr Kenneth Cutbush presented four shoulder surgery talks at the Australian Orthopaedic Association Annual Scientific Meeting, held from 12 to 16 October 2014 at the Melbourne Convention Centre.
What the Australian Orthopaedic Association is
The Australian Orthopaedic Association, or AOA, is the professional body for orthopaedic surgeons in Australia. It oversees orthopaedic specialist training, sets requirements for continuing professional development, and runs the national joint replacement registry, which records joint replacements performed in Australia and how long they last.
Its Annual Scientific Meeting is the main national gathering of the speciality. Surgeons submit abstracts describing their work, which are reviewed and selected for presentation, and the talks are then given to colleagues who are free to question the methods and the conclusions.
Arthroscopic subscapularis repair
Twenty repairs with at least six months of follow-up, all of which appeared intact on MRI.
The subscapularis is the rotator cuff tendon at the front of the shoulder. It turns the arm inwards and helps hold the ball of the joint against the socket. Repairing it arthroscopically means reattaching the torn tendon to the bone through keyhole portals, using anchors and sutures. MRI afterwards is how the repair is checked, because a tendon that has pulled away again is not always apparent from the outside. Individual results vary.
The Inspace balloon prosthesis
Seven patients with more than twelve months of follow-up, for irreparable rotator cuff tears. Pain and function improved initially, but those gains faded by twelve months in three of the seven patients, two of whom went on to have a reverse total shoulder replacement.
That is worth stating plainly rather than burying: an early improvement that does not hold is a different result from a durable one, and it is the kind of finding that only emerges with longer follow-up. Individual results vary.
AC joint reconstruction
The Weaver-Dunn-Chuinard procedure for chronic acromioclavicular joint dislocations, performed arthroscopically. Follow-up was short at the time, with no failures reported yet, which is not the same as none occurring.
Arthroscopic Latarjet with labral repair
Results to date from the series. The Latarjet transfers a hook of bone from the front of the shoulder blade onto the front rim of the socket, for shoulders that dislocate forwards and have lost bone from that rim.
Related information
- Our rotator cuff tear and rotator cuff repair pages
- Our AC joint arthrosis page
- Our shoulder instability page
- Our post on the SESA Scientific Meeting