The Lax Shoulder in Females

Abstract

A review of the existing data on shoulder laxity in females reveals there are insufficient data to confirm the commonly held belief that shoulders in females are more lax than shoulders in males. Laxity is not synonymous with instability. Although females may have increased generalized joint laxity relative to males, generalized joint laxity does not correlate with shoulder laxity. There is conflicting data regarding shoulder laxity and gender. A review of patients with multidirectional instability who were treated operatively showed that 55% of the patients were female (N = 94) and 45% were male (N = 77), but the number or gender of patients who were treated nonoperatively was not reported. Multidirectional instability is reviewed in the context of the lax shoulder in the female. Initial treatment should be nonoperative, emphasizing physical therapy and dynamic stabilization of the shoulder. If nonoperative treatment fails, open or arthroscopic inferior capsular shift stabilization is recommended. Additional basic science and clinical trials are needed to determine whether thermal capsulorrhaphy should be considered in the treatment of patients with multidirectional instability of the shoulder.