Surgical versus conservative management of Type III acromioclavicular dislocation: a systematic review

Introduction: The management of Type III acromioclavicular (AC) dislocations is still controversial. We wished to compare the rate of recurrence and outcome scores of operative versus non-operative treatment of patients with Type III AC dislocations. Source of data: A systematic review of the literature was performed by applying the PRISMA guidelines according to the PRISMA checklist and algorithm. A search in Medline, PubMed, Cochrane and CINAHL was performed using combinations of the following keywords: 'dislocation', 'Rockwood', 'type three', 'treatment', 'acromioclavicular' and 'joint'. Areas of agreement: Fourteen studies were included, evaluating 646 shoulders. The rate of recurrence in the surgical group was 14%. No statistical significant differences were found between conservative and surgical approaches in terms of postoperative osteoarthritis and persistence of pain, although persistence of pain seemed to occur less frequently in patients undergoing a surgical treatment. Areas of controversy: Persistence of pain seemed to occur less frequently in patients undergoing surgery. Growing points: Persistence of pain seems to occur less frequently in patients treated surgically for a Type III AC dislocation. Areas timely for developing research: There is insufficient evidence to establish the effects of surgical versus conservative treatment on functional outcome of patients with AC dislocation. High-quality randomized controlled clinical trials are needed to establish whether there is a difference in functional outcome.