This prospective RCT asks whether patients still need to be immobilized after arthroscopic Bankart repair with suture anchors. 62 patients with traumatic recurrent anterior instability were randomized to 3 weeks of sling immobilization or an accelerated program starting on day 1. The key question: does early motion increase recurrence, and does it speed functional recovery?
Match the rehab protocol to the lesion, not to habit. In a patient with a small classic Bankart, a robust labrum, and no significant bony defect or capsular laxity, early controlled motion after suture anchor repair is safe and gets them moving weeks earlier.
The mechanistic anchor is the coaptation zone: controlled external rotation keeps the repaired labral edges apposed to the glenoid, so early motion within that range does not stretch or detach the repair. The caution is in the selection criteria. This was a narrow subset, deliberately excluding bony Bankart, glenoid defect over 30%, multidirectional instability, laxity, and athletes.
Do not extrapolate this to a contact athlete with 25% bone loss and a friable labrum. The authors are explicit that their conclusions cannot be applied to all instability patients. Remember the equivalence too: final recurrence, scores, motion, and activity were the same. Early motion speeds the journey, it does not change the destination.
This prospective RCT asks whether patients still need to be immobilized after arthroscopic Bankart repair with suture anchors. 62 patients with traumatic recurrent anterior instability were randomized to 3 weeks of sling immobilization or an accelerated program starting on day 1. The key question: does early motion increase recurrence, and does it speed functional recovery?
Match the rehab protocol to the lesion, not to habit. In a patient with a small classic Bankart, a robust labrum, and no significant bony defect or capsular laxity, early controlled motion after suture anchor repair is safe and gets them moving weeks earlier.
The mechanistic anchor is the coaptation zone: controlled external rotation keeps the repaired labral edges apposed to the glenoid, so early motion within that range does not stretch or detach the repair. The caution is in the selection criteria. This was a narrow subset, deliberately excluding bony Bankart, glenoid defect over 30%, multidirectional instability, laxity, and athletes.
Do not extrapolate this to a contact athlete with 25% bone loss and a friable labrum. The authors are explicit that their conclusions cannot be applied to all instability patients. Remember the equivalence too: final recurrence, scores, motion, and activity were the same. Early motion speeds the journey, it does not change the destination.