Long-Term Results and Failure Analysis of the Open Latarjet Procedure and Arthroscopic Bankart Repair in Adolescents

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to analyze the long-term results of arthroscopic Bankart repair compared with an open Latarjet procedure in adolescents who are at high risk for recurrent anterior shoulder instability. We hypothesized that the long-term stability rate of an open Latarjet procedure would be superior to that of arthroscopic Bankart repair. METHODS: Forty eligible patients (41 shoulders) with a mean age of 16.4 years (range, 13 to 18 years) underwent arthroscopic Bankart repair, and 37 patients (40 shoulders) with a mean age of 16.7 years (range, 14 to 18 years) underwent an open Latarjet procedure. Of these, 34 patients (35 shoulders) in the Bankart group and 30 patients (31 shoulders) in the Latarjet group with long-term follow-up were compared; the overall follow-up rate was 82%. Clinical and radiographic results were obtained after a mean follow-up of 12.2 years (range, 8 to 18 years). RESULTS: Treatment failure occurred in 20 shoulders (57%) in the Bankart repair group and in 2 shoulders (6%) in the open Latarjet procedure group (p < 0.001), representing a significantly higher revision rate for instability in the Bankart group (13) compared with the Latarjet group (1) (p < 0.001). In patients without recurrent shoulder instability (15 in the Bankart group and 29 in the Latarjet group), there was a significant improvement in the Constant score (p = 0.006 in the Bankart group and p < 0.001 in the Latarjet group) and Subjective Shoulder Value (p = 0.009 in the Bankart group and p < 0.001 in the Latarjet group), without any significant difference between the 2 groups. Younger age was the only variable significantly correlated with failure following a Bankart repair (p = 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Adolescents are at a high risk for treatment failure after Bankart repair, and, therefore, the Latarjet procedure should be strongly considered as a primary procedure for recurrent anterior shoulder instability in this population. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Therapeutic Level III. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.