Pull to Start 

Author: Michael Kelleher, MD 
Editor: William Denq, MD, CAQ-SM
Final Editor: R. Conner Dixon, MD, CAQ-SM 

A 59-year-old male with a history of DVT on Eliquis presents to the emergency room with severe shoulder pain. The patient had been pushing his car when he fell onto his outstretched arms. His son subsequently pulled on his right arm to attempt to “relocate” it. During this, the patient experienced sudden worsening pain with his right arm becoming stuck above his head with the onset of numbness and tingling in his right arm.

Figure 1. Case courtesy of Leonardo Lustosa, Radiopaedia.org, rID: 168104 

References:

[1] Luxatio Erecta (Inferior Glenohumeral Joint Dislocation) - Shoulder & Elbow - Orthobullets 

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[6] Lippert, J. and Desai, B. (2018) Bilateral Luxatio Erecta: A Case Report. Case Reports in Clinical Medicine, 7, 608-612. https://doi.org/10.4236/crcm.2018.712056 

[7] POCUS Geek. (2019, May 9). POCUS - Evaluating for shoulder dislocation with ultrasound. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKFBPOoMrU