Tenodesis of the long head of biceps brachii in the painful shoulder: improving results in the long term.

Fifteen shoulders of 14 patients with a keyhole tenodesis of the long head of the biceps were reviewed at an average follow-up of 7 years (3 years, 1 month to 13 years, 2 months). In 13 cases additional shoulder disease was noted during the operation. Eight patients had undergone rotator cuff decompression before the reference biceps tenodesis was performed. Eight (53%) cases achieved an excellent result; one was rated as good, four were rated as fair, and two had failures. Seven shoulders had an improved result from short to long term, and only two deteriorated. An upward migration of the humeral head on x-ray evaluation was noted but was without clinical significance. A local anesthetic test to the long head of the biceps before the operation seemed to be valuable in assessing chances of a good long-term result.