Humeral head osteonecrosis following arthroscopic rotator cuff repair

Abstract

Humeral head chondrolysis and osteonecrosis of the glenoid have been reported; however, there is no report to date about humeral head osteonecrosis following arthroscopic shoulder procedure. We report a case of osteonecrosis of the humeral head following arthroscopic rotator cuff repair what we believe is probably secondary to disruption of its blood supply after placement of multiple metallic suture anchors. The surgical records were also reviewed in an attempt to identify the cause of the humeral head osteonecrosis.