All arthroscopic stabilization of acute acromioclavicular joint dislocation with fiberwire and endobutton system

acromioclavicular (AC) joint dislocation is common in athletes and in contact sports and about 9% of shoulder injuries involves this joint. The majority of these AC lesions can be successfully treated conservatively but high grade dislocation and some cases of type III dislocation need a surgical treatment. Many different operative techniques have been described over the years. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the results of arthroscopic stabilization of AC joint dislocation with TightRope® system. MATERIALS AND METHODS: nineteen patients with acute AC dislocation were treated by arthroscopic fixation with TightRope® system. Any associated lesions were repaired. All patients were assessed before surgery (T0), at 3 months (T1), at 6 months (T2) and at 1 year after the surgery (T3) using a visual analogic scale (VAS) and Constant-Murley Score (CMS). All patients were evaluated with X-ray. RESULTS: six AC-joint dislocations involved the right shoulder and thirteen the left shoulder. Ten were type III dislocation, three were type IV and six were type V dislocation. We found a statistically significant reduction of pain (p< 0.01) at T1 compared to the pretreatment scores. The CMS measures showed an improvement between T1, T2 and T3, but the difference was statistically significant only between T1 and T3 (p= 0.017). The postoperative X-Ray of the shoulder showed a good reduction of the AC joint dislocation. We had 1 case of recurrence and 2 cases of loss of intraoperative reduction. CONCLUSION: arthroscopic technique for acute AC joint dislocations with the use of the TightRope® device is minimally invasive and it allows an anatomic restoration of the joint. It is a safe and effective procedure ensuring stable AC joint reconstruction and good cosmetic results. KEYWORDS: AC joint separation; acromioclavicular joint dislocation; arthroscopic reconstruction; endobutton system