Abstract: Objective To study the indications for surgical treatment of unstable scapular fractures and its therapeutic effect on such fractures.Methods Clinical data about 37 patients with unstable scapular fractures including 31 males and 6 females with an average age of 38.7 years（range 20-60 years） who received surgical treatment in our hospital from January 2005 to October 2010 were retrospectively analyzed.Of the 37 patients,12 were diagnosed with scapular fracture,9 with glenoid neck fracture,5 with glenoid cavity fracture,3 with acromion fracture,1 with coracoid fracture,1 with scapular spine fracture,and 6 with combined fracture,according to the Hardegger classification system.Results The 37 patients were followed up for 2-69 months（range 22.9 months）.The healing time of fractures was 6-8 weeks with no infection and failure of internal fixation.The excellent and good therapeutic rate was 89.2% according to the Hardegger criterion.Conclusion Surgical treatment is a good procedure for unstable scapular fractures,which can reduce complications and maximally restore the function of glenohumeral joint.