Bifurcated intraarticular long head of biceps tendon

Indian J Orthop. 2014 Jul;48(4):432-4. doi: 10.4103/0019-5413.136313.

Abstract

Though rare, many anomalous origins of long head of the biceps tendon (LHBT) have been reported in the literature. Anatomic variations commonly explained are a third humeral head, anomalous insertion, congenital absence and adherence to the rotator cuff. We report a rare case who underwent shoulder arthroscopy with impingement symptoms where in LHBT was found to be bifurcated with a part attached to superior labrum and the other part to the posterior capsule of joint. Furthermore, intraarticular portion of LHBT was adherent to the undersurface of the supraspinatus tendon. Awareness of such an anatomical aberration during the shoulder arthroscopy is of great importance as it can potentially avoid unnecessary confusion and surgery.

Keywords: Anatomic variation; Arthroscopy; arthroscopy; bifurcated; long head biceps brachii; shoulder impingement syndrome; shoulder joint.