JBJS Case Connect. 2026 Aug 21;16(3). doi: 10.2106/JBJS.CC.26.00145. eCollection 2026 Jul 1.
ABSTRACT
CASE: A 71-year-old woman sustained a left proximal humerus fracture dislocation. Imaging demonstrated displacement of the humeral head medial to the axillary artery without initial injury. To avoid iatrogenic injury, a separate medial axillary incision was successfully used to remove the humeral head and then reverse total shoulder arthroplasty was performed through a deltopectoral approach. At 1 year, the patient had excellent range of motion and PROMIS Physical Function CAT (v2.0) score was 46.2.
CONCLUSIONS: A separate medial axillary approach can be used to safely remove anterior/inferior humeral head fragments and avoid neurovascular injury in reverse total shoulder arthroplasty for proximal humerus fracture dislocations.
PMID:42627940 | DOI:10.2106/JBJS.CC.26.00145