FAQs

How does one go about getting the "finesse" of pitching back after shoulder surgery? I had a labral tear repair and can pitch the baseball okay. But I'm noticing some difficulties with pitch control and wondering how I can get the "wobble" out of my pitches. Nothing I've tried so far has helped. Many overhead throwing athletes find that pitch accuracy, speed, and endurance can be compromised by injury and/or recovery after reparative or restorative surgery for that injury. And as you already kno...

I had one steroid injection for my frozen shoulder so far. There's been no change that I can see so far. Are there some exercises I can do to go along with the injection treatment? Before prescribing the best treatment for your shoulder, it's always important to know you have the correct diagnosis. For example, the terms frozen shoulder and adhesive capsulitis are often used interchangeably. The two terms describe the same painful, stiff condition of the shoulder no matter what causes it. A mor...

Everytime I life my arm up overhead, I get a loud snapping sound and instant pain. It feels like it's coming from my shoulder blade. This is becoming a major problem in my life because I am a lacrosse player on a college scholarship. What can I do to stop this from happening? You may have a problem that involves the scapula (shoulder blade). Without a properly functioning scapula, smooth and coordinated motion and function of the arm is compromised. Problems affecting the scapula that can disrup...

Three years ago, I had a very severe rotator cuff tear repaired. When I went in for a check-up the surgeon did a follow-up X-ray and ultrasound of the shoulder. Found out the tendon never really healed but I'm still much better. How do you explain that? According to a recent study from Washington University in St. Louis, adults with very large tears of the rotator cuff (the four tendons/muscles surrounding the shoulder) can get pain relief and improved function after surgical repair -- even if ...

If I have arthroscopic surgery to stabilize my chronically dislocating shoulder, what kind of rehab should I expect? The surgeon will use an all-arthroscopic "bony bank bridge" method of reconstruction. Surgeons from the Steadman Philippon Research Institute in Colorado recently wrote about their experiences using of an all-arthroscopic Bony Bankart Bridge (BBB) surgical technique for chronic shoulder instability. It was a fairly small study with only 15 patients. This is a fairly uncommon injur...

I have multidirectional shoulder instability from playing hockey as a kid. My surgeon has suggested I try some physiotherapy before thinking about surgery. Will this really help? Patients are often sent to physiotherapy for strengthening when the shoulder joint is unstable. But physiotherapists don't prescribe the same exercise program for everyone. The therapist uses clinical skill, expertise, experience, and evidence-based information to decide which mode (type) of exercise to use. The same de...

I had a steroid injection for a painful rotator cuff shoulder problem. I was expecting relief from the pain fairly quickly but nothing happened. The surgeon wants to inject the shoulder again. If it didn't work the first time why do it again? Injection of a steroid (antiinflammatory) and a numbing agent into the subacromial bursa is a fairly common treatment for rotator cuff problems. An inflamed bursa (a fluid-filled sac between the muscle and bone) can cause pain when the arm is raised (forwa...

Last fall I suffered a shoulder injury that still plagues me. Now I'm starting to have problems with my shoulder blade. Whenever I raise my arm up overhead, the shoulder blade rubs against my ribs causing a grinding feeling. Is this a new problem or part of the ongoing shoulder problem? The scapula (more often referred to as your "wing bone" or shoulder blade) is a key reason why your shoulder and arm normally move and glide smoothly and easily. Not only does the scapula give the shoulder muscle...

I went to an exercise physiologist for some help with a shoulder/scapula problem. She was adamant that I have to do a core training program as part of the rehab. Is this just a craze or is it really all that important? Core training (strengthening the muscles of the belly and trunk) has become quite popular but for good reason. The more we learn about the influence of the center stabilizing areas of the body, the more we realize how important core strength is to movement of the arms and legs.Th...

I had surgery for a rotator cuff tear two weeks ago. I'm wearing the abduction sling but I truly hate it. I've been given instructions by the surgeon but told not to do anything more than dangle and do circles with the arm while dangling. Would it really hurt anything to give it a tiny bit of movement? The nonhealing rate after rotator cuff repair is fairly high (20 to 90 per cent). This is the case despite all the improvements in the surgical technique and the less invasive aspect of arthrosco...

Our granddaughter separated her shoulder playing volleyball. They put her in a sling and said to rest it. That's it. Seems like that's how this problem was treated 40 years ago in my day. Haven't they come up with anything new or better than that in all this time? The acromioclavicular (AC) joint has come back into sharp focus in recent days. Because of changes in surgical technology, new advances have been made in the surgical treatment of this problem. You mentioned this condition by its more ...

I injured my shoulder playing touch football. It popped out of the socket but went right back in. The orthopedic surgeon I saw thinks it will be okay but there is a risk or it popping out again. If it went back in okay, and I don't stress it, will it stay there? There are many possible reasons why a shoulder dislocation might occur more than once. We call this recurrent shoulder dislocations. One of the main reasons is if there's been damage to the stabilizing features of the shoulder. One of th...

The orthopedic surgeon who is treating me showed me the MRI results and I definitely have a tear in the rotator cuff. But I don't remember ever injuring this arm so how is that possible? The shoulder joint is a very complex anatomic structure. In the absence of injury, chronic overuse can be one potential cause of a rotator cuff tear. Sometimes the natural angle of the shoulder or perhaps a too-shallow shoulder socket predisposes a person to microtears or other nontraumatic damage. There could b...

I had a full-thickness rotator cuff tear that was repaired using a special blood plasma product. It's supposed to speed up healing and recovery. Right now I'm still in the special pillow sling. I'm not scheduled to start rehab until the end of four (maybe six) full weeks. Is that faster than usual (i.e., without the special treatment)? The retear rate of repaired rotator cuffs is pretty high during the first three months postoperatively. That's why patients are put in an immobilizer and only all...

I'm finding quite a bit on the Internet about anterior shoulder dislocations but not much about posterior dislocations. What are the guidelines for rehab and recovery for this kind of injury? Shoulder dislocations are not uncommon. Most dislocate forward (called an anterior dislocation). Less often are the posterior shoulder dislocations. As the name suggests, a posterior shoulder dislocation occurs when the head of the humerus (upper arm bone) pops backwards out of the shoulder socket.As you ha...

What's the difference between a frozen shoulder and adhesive capsulitis? The term frozen shoulder has been around since the early 1930s. But recent research has been able to show that every stiff, painful shoulder isn't necessarily a true "frozen shoulder."You've heard the alternate term for this problem: adhesive capsulitis. According to the authors of a recent review, frozen shoulder and adhesive capsulitis are not the same things. What's the difference?Frozen shoulder is a vague term similar...

I was trying on clothes at the mall the other day in front of those three-way mirrors. I noticed that one of my shoulder blades is sticking out. What could be causing this? Should I do anything about it? What you may be seeing is something we call scapular winging. Scapula is another word for shoulder blade. Scapular winging, of course, describes the position of the scapula as it "sticks out."Sometimes you see scapular winging in young children. They haven't developed the full strength of the ar...

I knew I tore my rotator cuff a couple of years ago but it didn't bother me so I didn't have surgery. When I started developing some shoulder pain, the orthopedic surgeon did an MRI on me and found that the muscle has atrophied and the tear has filled in with fat. Is that normal? The natural history (what happens) to an unrepaired rotator cuff tear depends on several factors. The size of the original tear, the cause (trauma versus degenerative soft tissue changes), and your activity level since ...

I have a frozen shoulder that just isn't getting better. I've heard they can put you to sleep and manipulate the joint. Is there some other easier way to get the motion back without that kind of trauma? Manipulation under anesthesia has the advantage of restoring shoulder motion without using an open incision. But it does have the disadvantage that it is tearing or rupturing the tight, scarred down joint capsule.If you haven't tried the conservative route of physiotherapy, you might want to cons...

What's the best way to recover from a frozen shoulder? Many adults (mostly women) between the ages of 40 and 60 years of age develop a strange case of shoulder pain and stiffness called adhesive capsulitis. You may be more familiar with the term frozen shoulder to describe this condition.There isn't a one-best-treatment known for adhesive capsulitis. A review study was published on the topic. The authors are two orthopedic surgeons from the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City. They re...

If my shoulder popped out of the socket but went back in the socket by itself, do I have a subluxation or a dislocation? Subluxation is usually defined as an incomplete instability event that did not require manual assistance to reduce it. Manual assistance refers to a doctor or emergency medical technician using a hands-on technique (or surgery) to put the joint back in place. A shoulder that pops out of the joint but goes back in on its own is technically still a subluxation.Dislocation is a c...

I saw a physical therapist after dislocating my left shoulder. She put me through a complete program until I was ready to get back to work. From start to finish, I was back on the job in eight weeks. How does that compare to other people?

I confess I'm not much for exercise, so when I was diagnosed with snapping scapula syndrome, I skipped the surgeon's recommendation for physiotherapy and just took the antiinflammatory pills. But six weeks later and I'm still not any better really. Maybe if I knew what was involved with therapy, I might be more motivated to go. What can you tell me?

I just found out my shoulder pain is caused by something getting pinched in there. We're not sure just what's getting pinched but the MRIs should help clear up the anatomy of the problem. What's the cause of this condition? You know -- what brings it on?