Revision Total Shoulder Arthroplasty is Associated with Increased Thirty-Day Postoperative Complications and Wound Infections Relative to Primary Total Shoulder Arthroplasty.

Background: With an increasing volume of primary total shoulder arthroplasties (TSA), the number of revision TSA cases is expected to increase as well. However, the postoperative medical morbidity of revision TSA has not been clearly described.

Questions/Purposes: The purpose of this study was to determine the rate of postoperative complications following revision TSA, relative to primary TSA. In addition, we sought to identify independent predictors of complications, as well as to compare operative time and postoperative length of stay between primary and revision TSA.

Methods: Patients who underwent primary/revision TSA between 2005 and 2015 were identified in the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program. Differences in complications, readmission rates, operative time, length of stay, and predictors of complications were evaluated using bivariate and multivariate analyses.

Results: A total of 10,371 primary TSA (95.4%) and 496 revision TSA cases (4.6%) were identified. The overall complication rate was 6.5% in primary and 10.7% in revision TSA patients ( p  < 0.001). Multivariate analysis identified an increased risk of any complication (odds ratio 1.73, p  < 0.001), major complication (2.08, p  = 0.001), and wound infection (3.45, p  = 0.001) in revision TSA patients, relative to primary cases. Operative time was increased in revision cases (mean ± standard deviation, 125 ± 62.5), relative to primary (115 ± 47.7, p  < 0.001). Age > 75, female sex, history of diabetes or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and American Society of Anesthesiologists classification ≥ 3 were associated with increased risk of any complication. Smoking history was the only significant predictor of wound infection.

Conclusion: Revision TSA, in comparison to primary, poses an increased risk of postoperative complications, particularly wound infections. A history of smoking was an independent predictor of wound infections.