Minimally Invasive Shoulder Surgery
Arthroscopic shoulder surgery
Surgery on the shoulder is performed through small incisions using a camera to visualize the inside of the joint. Through several small incisions (about 1 centimeter each) your surgeon will insert a camera into one incision, and small instruments through the other incisions.
Is arthroscopic surgery better than traditional “open” surgery?
It depends.
Open surgery, a procedure using larger incisions and enabling the surgeon to look inside the joint, may be better for certain procedures under certain circumstances. Arthroscopic surgery has some advantages—smaller incisions, less tissue damage—but these are usually not helpful if the overall procedure cannot be performed as well. You need to discuss with your surgeon if a particular procedure can be done arthroscopically.
What conditions can be treated with arthroscopic shoulder surgery?
There are a wide variety of repairs that can be made to the shoulder arthroscopically. Those include:
- Rotator Cuff Tears – some orthopedic surgeons treat all rotator cuff tears arthroscopically, some choose particular tears, and others treat them all open. There is no consensus which one is better.
- Labral Tears/Slap Lesions – Labral tears and SLAP tears are commonly treated with arthroscopy. It is very important that patients who have arthroscopic surgery for these procedures follow their post-operative rehab protocol very closely.
- Impingement Syndrome – patients with impingement syndrome that is not cured with conservative treatments may consider a procedure called an arthroscopic subacromial decompression.
- Biceps Tendonitis – the biceps tendon can become irritated and inflamed as an isolated problem
- Frozen Shoulder – When frozen shoulder must be treated surgically, it is of utmost importance to begin aggressive physical therapy immediately following surgery. Without this, it is likely the problem will return.
- AC Joint Arthritis – the acromioclavicular joint is occasionally affected by arthritis. When arthritis of the AC joint is severe, the end of the clavicle (collarbone) can be removed. By removing the damaged joint, the symptoms of AC arthritis are often relieved.
