SLAP Lesion (Superior Glenoid Labral Tear or Glenoid Labral Tear)
From WebHealth
[edit] SLAP Lesion (Superior Glenoid Labral Tear or Glenoid Labral Tear)
The socket of the shoulder joint has a complex structure where the center is composed of the bony part of the socket (from the shoulder blade) with hyaline cartilage coating and this is surrounded with a softer material, called the "glenoid labrum" (see anatomy of shoulder).
With baseball pitching or similar strenuous actions the upper edge of this can tear (called "superior labral tear"). This can tear in 4 different ways and that's why there is a classification of type I, II,III and IV SLAP lesion (Ref. 4). The orthopedic surgeon with an interest in shoulder injuries will use different ways of dealing with each of these injuries.
After imaging studies often there will be an shoulder arthroscopy and depending on the complexitiy this alone might allow to fix the SLAP lesion. However, if this is technically impossible, the surgeon can convert this into an open procedure and fix the damage this way. Often the damage is too extensive to be completely repaired and the surgeon can only minimize the impact by doing what is possible. In about 40% of SLAP lesion cases there is also a simultaneous rotator cuff injury (Ref. 4).
| Home page | Arthritis | Shoulder pain |
References:
1. ABC of rheumatology, second edition, edited by Michael L. Snaith , M.D., BMJ Books, 1999.
2. The Merck Manual, 7th edition, by M. H. Beers et al., Whitehouse Station, N.J., 1999.
3. Goldman: Cecil Textbook of Medicine, 21st ed.(©2000)W.B.Saunders
4. Ferri: Ferri's Clinical Advisor: Instant Diagnosis and Treatment, 2004 ed., Copyright © 2004 Mosby, Inc.
5. Rakel: Conn's Current Therapy 2004, 56th ed., Copyright © 2004 Elsevier
6. Wheeless' Textbook of Orthopaedics: http://www.wheelessonline.com/ Several topics can be found under this link by entering the term you search for.
