Total Shoulder Replacement
Total shoulder arthroplasty (replacement) has seen an increasing prevalence with technological advancements over the past thirty years. One of the most common questions I encounter in my practice is how new is the shoulder replacement procedure? The consensus from medical and laypeople is that shoulder replacement is a new procedure without long-term data to support its utilization. The shoulder replacement has spanned over 130 years, with the first shoulder replacement performed by French Surgeon Jules Emile Péan in 1893. The patient was a 37-year-old gentleman with advanced tuberculosis. The prosthesis significantly improved his quality of life for 2 years prior to infection, necessitating its removal. The prosthesis is on display at the Smithsonian Institution. Dr. Charles Neer, an American Orthopaedic Surgeon in the 1950’s, developed the Neer I prosthesis, a partial replacement that became standard until his Neer II design in the 1970’s, which addressed the glenoid and became a Total Shoulder. In 1987, my mentor, Dr. Wayne ‘Buz’ Burkhead, developed the Select Modular Shoulder prosthesis, becoming the first modular total shoulder system. Around the same time, in the late 1980’s, Dr. Paul Grammont began developing the reverse Total Shoulder for the treatment of rotator cuff-deficient shoulder arthritis. Since completing my Shoulder and Elbow Fellowship in 2006 with Dr. Burkhead, I have witnessed the technological explosion in total shoulder prosthesis. This has resulted in increased indications and patient outcomes. Harkin et al.’s study from 2025 reveals that surgeons who perform more than 20 total shoulder replacements per year have significantly lower complication rates. Being a Subspecialist in Shoulder and Elbow, I specialize in managing complex shoulder and elbow disorders.
Donnis K. Harrison, MD, FAAOS, FAOSSM
Bienville Orthopaedic Specialists
Bibliography
Harkin W, Berreta RS, Williams T, Turkmani A, Scanaliato JP, McCormick JR, Klifto CS, Nicholson GP, Garrigues GE. The effect of surgeon volume on complications after total shoulder arthroplasty: a nationwide assessment. J Shoulder Elbow Surg. 2025 Apr;34(4):1112-1119. doi: 10.1016/j.jse.2024.07.025. Epub 2024 Sep 6. PMID: 39244148.
Zilber S. Shoulder Arthroplasty: Historical Considerations. Open Orthop J. 2017 Sep 30;11:1100-1107. doi: 10.2174/1874325001711011100. PMID: 29152004; PMCID: PMC5676005. (n.d.)
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