Outcome After Shoulder Fractures
摘要
Who knows how the patient is doing? Various outcome assessment instruments are available for evaluating shoulder fracture patients. Traditionally, the patient’s outcome has been assessed by the treating surgeon; if the patient is involved, it is the healthcare provider who chooses the relevant questions. The Constant-Murley Score, introduced in 1986 and now the most popular instrument for three decades, is a shoulder-specific, observer-administrated assessment instrument focusing on range of motion and strength. During the 1990s, patient-reported and patient-administrated instruments were developed and used in fracture patients. These instruments were often used in conjunction with a health-related quality-of-life questionnaire. Currently, no validated outcome assessment instruments are specifically designed for patients with shoulder fractures. Additionally, there has been limited reporting on the properties of existing instruments when used in a fracture population. Clinicians and researchers may find it challenging to choose outcome assessment instruments that are both relevant to the patients and comparable to previous reports. In this chapter, I will introduce the most commonly used outcome assessment instruments and discuss some of their limitations.