role of arthroscopy in treatment of resistant frozen shoulder

ABSTRACT

Frozen shoulder is defined by restriction of active and passive shoulder motion in all planes without a known specific cause. The pathophysiology and time course of the disease is still unclear. It is usually self-limited disorder generally lasting 12-18 months and is divided into three phases freezing phase then frozen phase followed by thawing phase. Thirty eight patients are included in this study complaing of pain, limitation of motion, functional limitation and sleep disturbance and have been symptomatic for more than eight months and have failed course of conservative non-operative treatment for at least 4 months. The patients are manipulated under general anesthesia in the beach-chair position followed by arthro-scopic examination and debridement of the glenohumeral joint and the subacromial space. The use of arthroscopy allows identification and treatment of associated pathology and increases range of motion through artrosco-pically -guided sectioning of coracohumeral ligament. The overall results are satisfactory in 31 cases [81.5%] which are comparable to the commonly published series