This 2019 JAAOS review by Chalmers et al. covers the full scope of revision reverse total shoulder arthroplasty — from diagnosing the cause of failure (infection, instability, loosening, bone loss) through surgical technique and expected outcomes. It answers: what do you need to know to safely plan and execute a revision RTSA?
When planning a revision RTSA, send intraoperative cultures for P. Acnes regardless of preoperative workup — apparent aseptic failure is often occult infection.
When proximal humeral bone is deficient, determine target humeral length from preoperative bilateral full-length films before the case, not from intraoperative soft-tissue tension alone, which is unreliable in the revision setting.
This 2019 JAAOS review by Chalmers et al. covers the full scope of revision reverse total shoulder arthroplasty — from diagnosing the cause of failure (infection, instability, loosening, bone loss) through surgical technique and expected outcomes. It answers: what do you need to know to safely plan and execute a revision RTSA?
When planning a revision RTSA, send intraoperative cultures for P. Acnes regardless of preoperative workup — apparent aseptic failure is often occult infection.
When proximal humeral bone is deficient, determine target humeral length from preoperative bilateral full-length films before the case, not from intraoperative soft-tissue tension alone, which is unreliable in the revision setting.