Patients are often curious to know what arthritis 'looks like'. Here is a view from a recent surgery showing an arthritic humeral head. At the right we can see the oval imprint where the glenoid socket is pressed against the humeral ball leaving no cartilage on the ball. At the left we can see the osteophytes (bone spurs) that disrupt the smooth joint surface and block the range of motion. In between is an orange band where a small amount of cartilage remains.
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This slide helps understand why advanced arthritis often requires both removal of the osteophytes and replacement of the arthritic joint surface with a smooth ball as shown below
The arthritic glenoid also requires attention.
It can be managed by reaming as in a ream and run procedure (see this link).
Or by resurfacing with a polyethylene glenoid component as in a total shoulder (see this link)
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Information about shoulder exercises can be found at this link.
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