Abstract
The most frequent criticism of antegrade humeral nailing is its potentially deleterious effect on shoulder function owing to the trauma to the rotator cuff at the insertion point. This problem may also occur when removing an intramedullary nail from the humerus. In an effort to decrease the trauma to the rotator cuff at the nail insertion site during removal of an intramedullary nail from the humerus and to allow recovery of shoulder function as soon as possible after removal, we performed arthroscopic removal of the intramedullary nail and arthroscopic rotator cuff repair. The advantages of this method include the fact that it is a less invasive approach, which causes minimal disruption of the rotator cuff, requires fewer days in hospital, and allows simultaneous arthroscopic correction of the accompanying lesion.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Chen AL, Thomas NJ, Wolinsky PR, et al (2002) Fixation stability of comminuted humeral shaft fractures: locked intramedullary nailing versus plate fixation. J Trauma 53:733–737
Crates J, Whittle AP (1998) Antegrade interlocking nailing of acute humeral shaft fractures. Clin Orthop Relat Res 350:40–50
Flinkkila T, Hyvonen P, Siira P, Hamalainen M (2004) Recovery of shoulder joint function after humeral shaft fracture: a comparative study between antegrade intramedullary nailing and plate fixation. Arch Orthop Trauma Surg 124(8):537–541
Garnavos C (2001) Intramedullary nailing for humeral shaft fractures: the misunderstood poor relative. Curr Orthop 15:68–75
Lin J (1998) Treatment of humeral shaft fractures with humeral locked nail and comparison with plate fixation. J Trauma 44:859–864
Riemer BL (1996) Intramedullary nailing of the humerus. In: Browner BD (ed) The science and practice of intramedullary nailing. Williams & Wilkins, Baltimore, pp 241–263
Yamaguchi K, Levine WN, Marra G, et al (2003) Transitioning to arthroscopic rotator cuff repair: the pros and cons. Instr Course Lect 52:81–92
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Kim, K., Rhee, K., Shin, H. et al. Arthroscopic removal of an intramedullary nail in the humerus. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthr 15, 922–926 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00167-006-0229-0
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00167-006-0229-0