Background: To explain the role of
arthroscopic release in intractable frozen shoulders. We used different questionnaires and measuring tools to understand whether
arthroscopic release is the superior modality to treat patients with intractable frozen shoulders. Methods: Between ۲۰۰۷ and ۲۰۱۳, in a prospective study, we enrolled ۸۰ patients (۵۲ females and ۲۸ males) with
recalcitrant frozen shoulder, who underwent
arthroscopic release at Ghaem Hospital, a tertiary referral center, in Mashhad, Iran. Before operation, all patients filled out the Disability of Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH), Constant, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), ROWE and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for pain questionnaires. We measured the difference in range of motion between both the normal and the frozen shoulders in each patient. Results: The average age of the patients was ۵۰.۸±۷.۱ years. In ۴۹ patients, the right shoulder was affected and in the remaining ۳۱ the left side was affected. Before surgery, the patients were suffering from this disease on average for ۱۱.۷±۱۰.۳ months. The average time to follow-up was ۴۷.۲±۶.۸ months (۱۴ to ۶۰ months). Diabetes mellitus (۳۸%) and history of shoulder trauma (۲۳%) were the most common comorbidities in our patients. We did not find any significant differences between baseline characteristics of diabetics patients with non-diabetics ones. After surgery, the average time to achieve maximum pain improvement and range of motion were ۳.۶±۲.۱ and ۳.۶±۲ months, respectively. The VAS score, constant shoulder score, Rowe score, UCLA shoulder score, and DASH score showed significant improvement in shoulder function after surgery, and shoulder range of motion improved in all directions compared to pre-operation range of motion. Conclusions: According to our results,
arthroscopic release of
recalcitrant frozen shoulder is a valuable modality in treating this disease. This method could decrease pain and improve both subjective and objective mid-term outcomes