Edited By: Sports Medicine Team Last updated: Thursday, December
31, 2009 | Shoulder instability (also called subluxation) and
shoulder dislocation are potentially painful and disabling
conditions, and the treatments for these conditions vary widely
depending upon the severity of symptoms and signs. Many patients
will improve with the appropriate bracing and physical therapy.
However, for those patients who require surgery, arthroscopic
shoulder surgery should be used to both define and diagnose the
exact nature of the joint instability. In most cases, the
problem can be treated using specially-designed instruments
working through very small incisions with a minimum of
discomfort and without the need for a hospital stay. The terms
“instability”, “subluxation” and “dislocation” mean different
things to different people. In addition, the term “shoulder
instability” is a term that encompasses a vast spectrum of
shoulder problems. In the simplest sense, the shoulder is like a
“ball and socket” joint. Figure 1a sh