Abstract
Background: Dislocation injuries of the glenohumeral joint are common in the general
public and generally are corrected without complication. One serious complication
with shoulder dislocations, or the subsequent reduction, is a lesion to the axillary
artery. This specific complication is most frequently seen in the elderly population,
where vascular structures have become less flexible. Also, these injuries are most
common in association with anterior dislocations of the shoulder. Objectives: To bring
awareness to the possibility of axillary artery injury with inferior dislocation of
the shoulder, the treatment options, and a review. Case Report: We report a 15-year-old
male athlete who inferiorly dislocated his shoulder during wrestling practice. The
injury was reduced at the scene with manual traction and the patient was transferred
to our clinic for evaluation. The patient was determined to have a pseudoaneurysm
of the axillary artery, and the history and treatment of the illness are presented.
Conclusion: Axillary artery injuries secondary to shoulder dislocations are rare,
especially in the young athlete, and proper recognition and treatment offer patients
a full recovery.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: September 24, 2008
Accepted:
January 29,
2008
Received in revised form:
January 20,
2008
Received:
October 2,
2007
Identification
Copyright
© 2010 Published by Elsevier Inc.
