Clinical characteristics of patients with posterosuperior labral tear: a comparison with patients with other shoulder disorders

BACKGROUND: Among the various causes of shoulder pain, the glenoid labral tear is likely to be overlooked due to its ambiguous symptoms, especially if clinicians do not have a prior suspicion, making it difficult to diagnose, unlike adhesive capsulitis or a rotator cuff tear. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical features of posterosuperior (PS) labral tear. METHODS: Of the patients who visited the clinic, the medical records of patients with shoulder pain who underwent shoulder magnetic resonance imaging or ultrasound after intra-articular injection (arthrosonography) were investigated retrospectively. Based on these criteria, a total of 120 patients with adhesive capsulitis, rotator cuff problem, or PS labral tear were included for analysis in this study. RESULTS: In the physical examination, all patients with a PS labral tear were positive on the O’Brien test (13/13, 100%) and the external rotation (ER) test with the upper arm in the abduction position (abduction and ER [ABER] test) (13/13, 100%), but they were negative on other tests, such as the Hawkins–Kennedy (1/13, 7.69%) and Neer (0/13, 0.00%) tests. Except one patient, all patients with a PS labral tear were negative on the ER test with the upper arm in the neutral position (ER test) (1/13, 7.69%). In the clinical history, all patients with a PS labral tear had a characteristic episode of shoulder pain occurring in the excessive ABER posture. CONCLUSION: In patients with characteristic physical findings (no definite loss of motion of the shoulder joint, negative in an ER test, but positive in an ABER test and O’Brien test), and with a clinical history of PS labral tear (a history of pain occurring with the excessive ABER posture), clinicians need to have a suspicion of PS labral tear and to identify the PS labral tear using MRI or arthrosonography