Although this question was also raised in Q&A for Artificial Joints No. 8, similar inquiries continue to be frequently asked.

 
Q. I’m over 80 years old and have severe shoulder pain that interferes with my daily life. If surgery can relieve the pain, I would like to undergo it, but I’m concerned about my age.
 
A. Even if you are over 80, reverse shoulder arthroplasty can be expected to relieve shoulder pain. So please don’t hesitate to consult with a shoulder specialist. We will do our best to accommodate patients, even those coming from far away. In fact, a patient recently came all the way from Tokyo for surgery.
 
Let us show you the basis for what we are saying. Please watch Video 1 and Video 2.

The first patient underwent reverse shoulder arthroplasty at the age of 78 due to rotator cuff tear arthropathy. Now at age 84, she continues to live comfortably without any recurrence of the preoperative pain.
 
The second patient received reverse shoulder arthroplasty at the age of 86 for osteoarthritis of the shoulder.
 
Even now at age 88, she remains pain-free and is doing well.

These data represent a comparison between cases of total shoulder arthroplasty and reverse shoulder arthroplasty that we performed for patients with glenohumeral osteoarthritis.
 

How to interpret the data:

We compared 7 cases of total shoulder arthroplasty with 19 cases of reverse shoulder arthroplasty. The reverse shoulder arthroplasty group showed better outcomes in terms of the Constant score, as well as greater range of motion in both forward flexion and abduction.
These results indicate that even in patients over the age of 80, reverse shoulder arthroplasty can provide significant pain relief and improved arm elevation.
 

Conclusion

Even in patients over the age of 80, reverse shoulder arthroplasty can be expected to provide significant relief from severe shoulder pain caused by osteoarthritis or rotator cuff tear arthropathy, allowing them to return to a level of daily life without major limitations.