Surgical treatment of Sprengel's deformity: A modified Green procedure

Abstract

Twelve cases of Sprengel's deformity were treated surgically by a modification of Green's procedure. After clavicular osteotomy, all muscular attachments to the scapula were freed; an omovertebral band if present was cut and the scapula was rotated and moved caudal to a more normal position, to be sutured into a pocket of the latissimus dorsi. The patients included 10 female and 2 male patients (age range at the time of operation: 3 to 9 years; mean: 5.2 years). The deformity involved the left shoulder in 8 patients, the right shoulder in 4. All patients were followed for an average of 2 years (range: 6 months to 4.5 years). The range of flexion improved from an average of 95° to 105° and the range of abduction from an average of 81° to 97°. Cosmesis was improved in all 12 patients but three patients had an unsightly surgical scar. Surgical treatment by a modified Green procedure for patients with Sprengel's deformity is indicated when the patient and family want cosmetic or functional improvement.