Editorial Commentary: Improving Arthroscopic Bankart Repair Outcomes in Patients With Subcritical Bone Loss: Does Giving Up a Little (Cartilage), Give Us a Lot (of Stability)?

Over the past 3 decades, arthroscopic Bankart repair has become the gold standard for anterior shoulder instability in the absence of significant bone loss. Glenoid curettage may seem unusual in the setting of Bankart repair, but the advantage of a bleeding bony surface in reconstructive procedures is nearly universal in sports medicine, from cartilage restoration in the knee to rotator cuff repair. Intuitively, maximizing the surface of bleeding bone should improve healing, but is it really necessary to remove undamaged cartilage to create a healing response? Perhaps not in general, but in high-risk patients with subcritical bone loss curettage it could make sense.
Source: Arthroscopy - Journal of Arthroscopic and Related Surgery - Category: Surgery Authors: Tags: Editorial Commentary Source Type: research