Rehabilitation of shoulder instability following surgery

The basic principals of rehabilitation for shoulder stabilization are the restoration of glenohumeral compression stability, scapulohumeral motion synchrony, and the proprioceptive mechanism. The principals of rehabilitation applied following surgical treatment of patients with shoulder instability do not differ from those applied for non-operative patients. Recent advances in surgical techniques and suture materials have improved the quality of healing tissues and allowed early institution and acceleration of rehabilitation programs. There are many different rehabilitation protocols constructed according to the type of instability and surgical procedures, but when a postoperative rehabilitation program is outlined, the patient’s age, previous activity level, expectations, and compliance with and response to treatment should also be taken into consideration.