This cadaveric biomechanical study compares glenohumeral stability across SLAP tear, SLAP repair, and biceps tenodesis conditions. It asks whether repairing the labrum, adding an anterior anchor, or tenodesing the biceps changes translation and range of motion. Eight shoulders were tested in a controlled loading model.
The clinical decision rule here: when you tenodese or tenotomize the biceps, you accept a measurable loss of glenohumeral stability regardless of whether the labrum is repaired. In this model, SLAP repair alone (posterior or combined) kept translation and range of motion at intact levels, while both tenodesis conditions increased anteroposterior translation and terminal external rotation.
This matters most in the competitive overhead athlete, where the literature already cautions against primary tenodesis and where even small kinematic shifts can affect performance. The biceps is an active humeral head compressor and depressor.
The study also pushes back on a common teaching point: adding an anterior anchor did not restrict external rotation, though it did shift the humeral head posteriorly at one position, hinting at mild overconstraint. Remember this is a static cadaveric model that cannot capture pain, dynamic muscle firing, or associated ligament injury, so correlate cautiously.
This cadaveric biomechanical study compares glenohumeral stability across SLAP tear, SLAP repair, and biceps tenodesis conditions. It asks whether repairing the labrum, adding an anterior anchor, or tenodesing the biceps changes translation and range of motion. Eight shoulders were tested in a controlled loading model.
The clinical decision rule here: when you tenodese or tenotomize the biceps, you accept a measurable loss of glenohumeral stability regardless of whether the labrum is repaired. In this model, SLAP repair alone (posterior or combined) kept translation and range of motion at intact levels, while both tenodesis conditions increased anteroposterior translation and terminal external rotation.
This matters most in the competitive overhead athlete, where the literature already cautions against primary tenodesis and where even small kinematic shifts can affect performance. The biceps is an active humeral head compressor and depressor.
The study also pushes back on a common teaching point: adding an anterior anchor did not restrict external rotation, though it did shift the humeral head posteriorly at one position, hinting at mild overconstraint. Remember this is a static cadaveric model that cannot capture pain, dynamic muscle firing, or associated ligament injury, so correlate cautiously.