BILATERAL COMMINUTED FRACTURE OF THE PROXIMAL HUMERUS WITH POSTERIOR DISLOCATION TREATED BY HEMIARTHROPLASTY AND ARTHRODESIS

Functional recovery after bilateral comminuted fractures of the humera l head with posterior dislocation is poor. When reposition and interna l fixation fail, the remaining alternatives are (hemi)arthroplasty and /or arthrodesis. In a 50-year-old patient, we treated the dominant sho ulder by arthrodesis; a Neer prosthesis was inserted at the other side . Using this strategy, the advantages of both techniques were combined with an acceptable functional recovery, which ist especially importan t for young and active patients.