title: Arthroscopic treatment of gunshot wounds to the shoulder.
abstract: Two cases are presented that demonstrate the utility of arthroscopic intervention for the management of gunshot wounds to the shoulder. The first report involves a 24-year-old man with a retained bullet in his glenohumeral joint after a drive-by shooting The intra-articular bullet was retrieved arthroscopically avoiding chondral injury from the mechanical effects of a loose body as well as the potential local and systemic effects of lead toxicity. Irrigation and debridement was performed to evacuate joint debris, which could have served as a nidus for infection or inflammation. The other case describes a 19-year-old man who sustained a gunshot wound to the lateral portion of his upper arm resulting in a proximal humerus fracture along with a retained bullet in his subacromial space. The bullet was successfully removed arthroscopically avoiding a traditional exposure, which would have complicated his fracture care.
authors.affiliation: Saint Joseph Hospital/Creighton University Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska, USA. ivantarkin@cs.com
authors.forename: Ivan S
authors.initials: IS
authors.lastname: Tarkin
authors.forename: Armodios
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hatzidakis
authors.forename: Samuel C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Hoxie
authors.forename: Charles E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Giangara
authors.forename: Reginald Q
authors.initials: RQ
authors.lastname: Knight
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001182:Arthroscopy / Q000379:methods*; D003646:Debridement; D005547:Foreign Bodies / Q000601:surgery; D005548:Foreign-Body Migration / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000601:surgery; D005549:Foreign-Body Reaction / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control; D007855:Lead Poisoning / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000601:surgery; D008297:Male; D012782:Shoulder / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D012784:Shoulder Fractures / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery; D012785:Shoulder Joint / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D007507:Therapeutic Irrigation; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D014948:Wounds, Gunshot / Q000601:surgery*