This ABOS database study examined 4,975 SLAP repairs reported by board candidates from 2003 to 2008. It asked whether the rate of SLAP repair is consistent with published literature and whether outcomes justify the procedure's use. Short-term outcomes and complication data are reported alongside demographic and geographic utilization trends.
A 4.7% complication rate and only 13% of patients with normal function at follow-up should change how you consent patients for SLAP repair — this is not a low-risk, reliable procedure.
When you see a positive MRI and a patient over 40 with superior labrum pathology, think biceps tenodesis first. The literature cited here supports tenodesis for patients physiologically older than 40, and outcomes after SLAP repair in this age group are particularly difficult to justify.
Do not operate on MRI findings alone. Up to 35% of community-read shoulder MRIs are called positive for labral pathology. Patient selection requires concordant age, physical examination, and response to differential injection — not just imaging.
This paper is why attendings push back on SLAP repairs in middle-aged recreational athletes. The 3x over-utilization documented here drove a national conversation about appropriate indications that still shapes how fellowship programs teach this procedure.
This ABOS database study examined 4,975 SLAP repairs reported by board candidates from 2003 to 2008. It asked whether the rate of SLAP repair is consistent with published literature and whether outcomes justify the procedure's use. Short-term outcomes and complication data are reported alongside demographic and geographic utilization trends.
A 4.7% complication rate and only 13% of patients with normal function at follow-up should change how you consent patients for SLAP repair — this is not a low-risk, reliable procedure.
When you see a positive MRI and a patient over 40 with superior labrum pathology, think biceps tenodesis first. The literature cited here supports tenodesis for patients physiologically older than 40, and outcomes after SLAP repair in this age group are particularly difficult to justify.
Do not operate on MRI findings alone. Up to 35% of community-read shoulder MRIs are called positive for labral pathology. Patient selection requires concordant age, physical examination, and response to differential injection — not just imaging.
This paper is why attendings push back on SLAP repairs in middle-aged recreational athletes. The 3x over-utilization documented here drove a national conversation about appropriate indications that still shapes how fellowship programs teach this procedure.