Skip to main content
Ryan Gow

Ryan Gow

Ryan Gao is an orthopaedic shoulder and elbow surgeon at Axis Sports Medicine and Health New Zealand | Waitematā in Auckland, and a guest on The Spin from Axis podcast.

Sep 23, 2026

8:34
So first up, there are different options, right? So can you tell us about the different options that are available for surgery? And then maybe we'll move on to how you might choose the right operation.
8:46
Absolutely.
8:47
I think, you know, Mark, we mentioned at the beginning, we talked about how fortunate we are to practice evidence-based medicine in New Zealand.
8:53
So I'm all about getting patients better with or without surgery, ideally without surgery.
8:57
But shoulder instability is one type.
9:00
of problem that I would advocate surgery for.
9:03
One of my mentors overseas, who's a very prominent shoulder surgeon, taught me that you may not need to operate after the first dislocation, but you should always operate before the second one.
13:08
So maybe I'll just get you to give us a high-level summary of when you might choose the band cap repair versus when you might choose the leather jacket.

We value your privacy

We use cookies to understand how you use our platform and to improve your experience. Click “Accept All” to consent, or “Decline non-essential” to opt out of non-essential cookies. Read our Privacy Policy.