Axillary Artery Injury and By-Pass Restoration After Open Reduction of a Chronic Shoulder Dislocation: A Case Report

Injury of the axillary artery after open reduction of a chronic shoulder dislocation is a rare and life-threatening condition. We present a case of an elderly woman suffering from a chronic shoulder dislocation which was addressed initially with close reduction and secondarily, after re-dislocation, with open reduction. Intraoperatively axillary artery rupture was established. By-pass restoration with a saphenous vein graft successfully managed the complication. The humeral head was immobilized in the glenoid with temporary K-wires. A CT-angiography was performed on the first and second days postoperatively.