Distal Biceps Repair Using an All-Suture Anchor Technique.

Distal biceps ruptures are common injuries that lead to significant decrease in elbow supination strength and pain. This Technical Note describes a single-incision distal biceps tendon repair using 2 knotless suture anchors. This technique is easily reproducible, is efficient, and has the unique benefits of decreasing the risk of heterotopic ossification and damage to neurovascular structure while providing similar outcomes to other described fixation techniques.

Single shot interscalene regional anesthesia provides noninferior analgesia and decreased complications compared with an indwelling catheter for arthroscopic and reconstructive shoulder surgery.

BACKGROUND: There is an abundance of literature comparing the efficacy, safety, and complication rates of regional anesthesia in shoulder surgery. The purpose of this study was to compare analgesia efficacy, and complication rates between single shot and continuous catheters in patients undergoing arthroscopic or reconstructive shoulder surgery in a large cohort. METHODS: Consecutive patients (n = 1888) who underwent shoulder arthroplasty or arthroscopic shoulder surgery and had regional anesthesia were included. Patients had either a single-shot interscalene block (SSIB) or an SSIB with a continuous interscalene nerve block with a catheter (CIB). The decision for SSIB or CIB was selected based on patient risk factors and surgeon preference. Patients received phone calls on postoperative days 1, 2, 7, and 14 to assess for pain levels (numeric rating scale [NRS]) and complications. RESULTS: One hundred sixty patients received SSIB, and 1728 patients received CIB. The postoperative NRS scores at day 1 were also similar. There were 3 complications (2%) in the SSIB group and 172 complications (10%) in the CIB group. Ten patients in the CIB group required emergency department (ED) visits secondary to block complications compared with no ED visits in the SSIB group. CONCLUSION: In 1888 consecutive patients, SSIB and CIB provided similar pain relief following shoulder surgery. However, patients who received CIB had significantly more complications and ED visits than patients who received SSIB. The potential benefits of longer pain relief may not outweigh the risks of CIB vs. SSIB in common shoulder procedures.