Dislocation of the shoulder joint with ipsilateral humeral shaft fracture: two case reports

Introduction: A combination of the shaft fracture of the humerus with shoulder dislocation is a rarely documented injury. Moreover, few reports describe a long-term outcome after a follow-up period over 10 years. The present article is the first report of long-term clinical results obtained with this combined injury. Materials and methods: We present two cases of the dislocation of the shoulder joint with ipsilateral humeral shaft fracture. One is an anterior dislocation and the other is posterior. The anterior dislocation was closely reduced on the date of injury, but the posterior dislocation required open reduction 6 weeks after the injury because it was missed at the initial diagnosis and identified 4 weeks after the injury. In the latter case, shoulder pain and limitation of the motion persisting after the first surgery had to be treated by anterior acromioplasty and arthrolysis of the shoulder. In both cases, the humeral fracture was fixed by retrograde intramedullary nailing using a Küntscher nail and successful bone union was achieved. Results: At over 10-year follow-up examination, both patients had no limitation in activities of daily living and no restrictions to their normal occupation. The radiographs of the shoulder joint demonstrated good clinical results, with no degenerative change or osteonecrosis. Conclusion: We have experienced two cases of dislocation of the shoulder joint with ipsilateral humeral shaft fracture and reported long-term results over 10 years. Good clinical results were demonstrated in both cases.