From Hippocrates to the Eskimo - a history of techniques used to reduce anterior dislocation of the shoulder

It has been recognised for thousands of years that the shoulder joint is pa rticularly prone to dislocation following trauma. From the time of Hippocra tes, physicians have described a variety of different techniques aimed at r educing shoulder dislocations. In this article we review the historical dev elopment of these techniques and suggest that, despite being described as n ew many of these are simply variations on an already established method.