Arthroscopic capsulorrhaphy formultidirectional instability

Multidirectional shoulder instability is a common affliction and is increasingly recognized as a debilitating condition in young, athletic patients. Most patients with this condition are in their third decade and have a history of macrotrauma or repetitive microtrauma. Complaints range from frank instability to instability with pain, or to pain alone. These patients may display clinical signs of instability, impingement, or both on physical examination. Generalized ligamentous laxity or shoulder laxity alone are usually present. A positive sulcus sign remains the most sensitive clinical test in distinguishing these patients, even though no data is available on the sensitivity or specificity of this examination. The greater majority of patients are successfully treated with an exercise program stressing rotator cuff and scapular stabilizer strengthening. When patients do not respond to conservative treatment, open capsular shift has been recommended to restore joint stability. Early successes with the arthroscopic treatment of anterior shoulder instability have led to the development of similar procedures for the treatment of multidirectional instability. This paper describes an arthroscopic, multiple suture capsulorrhaphy for the treatment of multidirectional shoulder instability, which is a modification of the procedure advocated by Caspari and reviews the 2-year results of the first 19 patients treated.