What’s a reverse Bankart injury? I’ve had surgery to repair a Bankart lesion. I’ve never heard of a reverse one. I saw a report in our local newspaper that a favorite athlete of mine has this condition.

Bankart or reverse Bankart injuries occur in the shoulder. They are usually the result of a traumatic injury leading to shoulder dislocation. About 95 percent of all shoulder dislocations occur in the forward (anterior) direction. In the case of the Bankart lesion, the anterior labrum tears during an anterior shoulder dislocation.

The labrum is a rim of extra cartilage around the shoulder socket. It helps deepen the fairly shallow shoulder socket to keep the head of the humerus inside the cup. With a reverse Bankart, the shoulder dislocates in a backward direction (posteriorly). The back (posterior) portion of the labrum is torn or ruptured. This type of injury is rare.