Labral Tears

What are they?
The labrum is a circular "lip" that runs around the bony socket (glenoid) of the joint. It deepens the socket and makes the ball (the humeral head) fit into it better and more securely. It is seen well in the third and fourth diagrams on the anatomy page. This structure can be torn, or pulled away from the bone. This is common in throwers.

The most common type of labral tear is the SLOP tear (Superior Labral Only Posterior to the biceps tendon). Please look here for an animation on how that happens in the throwers shoulder.

What does it feel like?
This can cause pain during all phases of throwing. Athletes normally complain of a "catching" or a "popping" sensation deep inside the shoulder, and it is usually painful when it pops or catches. This makes throwing very uncomfortable and throwers often avoid throwing when they have a labral tear because of the pain.

How are they treated?
Nonoperative treatment is not usually successful if the labrum is torn, because it is a dense cartilage that does not normally heal by itself naturally.

Operative treatment is required for most tears of the labrum. This is done with arthroscopic surgery using very small skin incisions. This has many advantages over older open surgery techniques.

How long will I be out of throwing?
If surgery is required as it normally is for this condition, about 9-12 months.