Delayed Axillary Artery Pseudoaneurysm as an Isolated Consequence to Anterior Dislocation of the Shoulder

Brachial plexus injury secondary to pseudoaneurysm of axillary artery after glenohumeral dislocation: case report

“…Furthermore, due to its proximity to the humeral head, the entire axillary artery is susceptible to damage during shoulder dislocation, especially in cases where there is concurrent fracture of the humeral head. 2 , 3 , 8 , 10 Nonetheless, vessel wall rupture may result from excessive force applied during manipulation and reduction of a dislocation. 8 Arterial injury is more frequent in elderly patients (more than 90% of cases occur in patients aged over 50 years), due to atherosclerotic disease and arterial stiffness – which makes the vessels less resistant to stress – and in patients with history of chronic dislocation (27% of cases), due to the formation of a fibrotic scar between the joint capsule and the axillary artery.…”

“…Among the major joints in the human body, the glenohumeral joint is the most affected by dislocation, representing approximately 45% of cases. 1 , 2 , 3 Less than 1% of shoulder dislocation patients present vascular complications, and less than 4% show neurological damage. 3 In 1911, in the French literature, Guibe 4 was the first to describe axillary artery injury secondary to shoulder dislocation, citing 57 cases.…”

“…Sparks et al 5 conducted a study that included 1565 cases of dislocations of the upper limb, detecting arterial injury in only 0.97% of cases. 1 , 2 , 5 , 6 …”

An unusual presentation of thoracoacromial artery pseudoaneurysm following shoulder arthroplasty

“…A similar mechanism of axillary artery injury secondary to shoulder dislocation has been described in the literature,8 where tension on the axillary artery due to dislocation and the artery being relatively fixed at the lateral margin causes the pectoralis minor to act as a fulcrum over which the artery is deformed. Cases of axillary artery pseudoaneurysm as a consequence of anterior dislocation of the shoulder have been described; these again emphasise the importance of early diagnosis of psudoaneurysms to prevent the risk of long-term vascular and neurological sequelae 9 10…”

Neurovascular Injuries with Shoulder Surgery

“…35.7 ). This alone may result in either early or late presenting vascular injury [ 34 ]. If an anatomic closed reduction cannot be achieved, then a vascular examination is mandatory to ensure that the artery is not interposed between the articular surfaces.…”