Dr update.

[vicklynn]

I went to my Work Comp Dr appt today to find out what my MRI and exrays said.
The exray was clean, no break, no disconnection, so thats good.
The MRI, not so good.
My rotator cup is messed up. Torn ligament, swelling, strained muscles.
He refered me to an Ortho Surgeon to see what we are going to do.
I am on the cusp of surgery. I dont do going under well. I dont like surgery.
If we decided on letting it heal(which the Dr said he dosnt think it will alone)then it would be MONTHS before it did, IF it did. Im probably gonna have surgery.
The good news on that. Bob and I sat next to 2 couples at dinner today, had some great conversations with them and one of the men had both rotator cups fixed. He held both arms up like there was never an issue. He said 8 weeks of therapy afterwards, but he feels fine.
Now Im just waiting on the call to make the appt for the surgeon.

Keep me in your thoughts and prayers. Im so frustrated with this. Its already been just over 8 weeks sence this happened.

FYI, please be careful when pulling clothes from a washer, one wrong pull and something has to give.
The laundry wont give , you will. I did this unloading our front loader(which we PACK tight)at work.

[alittleoffkey]

My Dad just had his rotator cup fixed orthoscopically three weeks ago. He still has limitations as to what he's allowed to do, but he says it already feels infinitely better than it did before the surgery... and he was miserable before the surgery.

For a couple of days after the surgery though, it hurt a thousand times worse. He says it was completely worth it though... and like I said - it's just been three weeks. Just make sure you follow all the silly little rules the doctor gives you; if you don't you can mess it up even worse. ;)

Prayers up for you Vick.

[natisha]

I went to my Work Comp Dr appt today to find out what my MRI and exrays said.
The exray was clean, no break, no disconnection, so thats good.
The MRI, not so good.
My rotator cup is messed up. Torn ligament, swelling, strained muscles.
He refered me to an Ortho Surgeon to see what we are going to do.
I am on the cusp of surgery. I dont do going under well. I dont like surgery.
If we decided on letting it heal(which the Dr said he dosnt think it will alone)then it would be MONTHS before it did, IF it did. Im probably gonna have surgery.
The good news on that. Bob and I sat next to 2 couples at dinner today, had some great conversations with them and one of the men had both rotator cups fixed. He held both arms up like there was never an issue. He said 8 weeks of therapy afterwards, but he feels fine.
Now Im just waiting on the call to make the appt for the surgeon.

Keep me in your thoughts and prayers. Im so frustrated with this. Its already been just over 8 weeks sence this happened.

FYI, please be careful when pulling clothes from a washer, one wrong pull and something has to give.
The laundry wont give , you will. I did this unloading our front loader(which we PACK tight)at work. So sorry to hear but at least you know what it is now, except it's Cuff not cup ;) Those surgeries heal pretty well, better to get it done before winter chores start.

[oursarge]

I didn't know you could get hurt so bad doing laundry, another good excuse not to do it! I really wish you'd heal without the surgery it is scary to think about. I was a wreck with oral surgery and that's way different. My brother in law and mother in law both had what you have and they recovered fine with no issues at all, I think they both had physical therapy after, it has not stopped them from doing anything they did before and now they are not in pain. The going under is the scariest part. Good luck, I really hope you will be better soon. It is so not fun to be in pain.

[JetLagaside]

Oh bummer, here's hoping everything heals up quickly.
My husbands working thru a shoulder injury from the motorcycle accident and it's been 2 weeks for him, it looks like he's going back to the DR too.

[Remali]

Oh ouch Vick, that has to be so painful! I know a couple people who have had rotator cuff surgery, it went real well for them and the recovered fine......but before the surgery they sure didn't feel very well.

[vicklynn]

Ops...cuff then it is...LOL

I just want my life back, and from what I hear, I will have it!!!
That is good news.

[natisha]

Ops...cuff then it is...LOL

I just want my life back, and from what I hear, I will have it!!!
That is good news. Yes, but don't let them mess with your cups;)

[gaited07]

(((HUGS))) Of course you have my thoughs and prayers. (((HUGS)))

[vicklynn]

Yes, but don't let them mess with your cups;)
:hysterical:
that may be fun

[Remali]

You guys crack me up..... ;) LMAO.

[Equine_Woman]

Oh man!! I'm so sorry you are facing this Vick!! But like I told my Mom when she had to have a full knee replacement, once you're through with the surgery and have your life back you won't remember how bad the surgery and recovery actually were!! If the surgery will get you there faster I vote for that simply because you're too young to be sidelined and in pain. Pain ages a person!!! Keep us posted on what you decide of course!! I'll be praying for you!

[lovesfortune]

ouch. what you are describing sounds a lot like my husband's issue. he went in to the dr. and she told him to take 3-4 ibuprofen 3x a day with food for two weeks and if no improvement they would schedule an MRI to see what's going on.

Hope you are better soon!!!

[Gypsy Rose]

Ouch, Vicky! At least now you know what's wrong, at any rate, and that it's fixable!

[Steelhorserider]

Hope you heal soon. I know why I don't particularly like doing wash..it may be hazardous to my health.

[rocknK]

VL, I hurt my shoulder at work five years ago & it took four surgeries to fix it. The last one was a "hemi-cap" procedure, google it, that's what fixed me after three less than successful procedures. My advice get a 2nd & 3rd opinion, then if you do deceide to get cut find the best surgeon available. Also ifn' its your dominant arm, I'd start practicing certain bathroom functions with your other arm. You'd be suprised how difficult it is, because it'll be awhile before you're able to "function" normally. Find a real good therapist. The first one I had at the "clinic" was a joke. She was working on 4 or 5 folks at one time & I got very little actual "therapy". Good luck.:)

[Vacker Hast]

Prayers are up for you and good vibes for future healing. I think I would do what rocknK suggested. Good luck with all of this and speedy recovery ... it's no fun trying to work and do chores in that kind of pain with every movevent of that arm.

Stacy

[Ranger44]

Good luck with the cuff Vick. It will take the right doc or nurse for the cup thing to work :hysterical:.

I've heard nothing but good reports from the people I have spoken to that had shoulder surgery.

[vicklynn]

Also ifn' its your dominant arm, I'd start practicing certain bathroom functions with your other arm. You'd be suprised how difficult it is, because it'll be awhile before you're able to "function" normally.:)
Oh my, Id better get right on that. Never thought of those issues...LOL.


Thank you all for your concern, well wishes and info.

[TLC97]

Well if you decide to have your cuff fixed and wanted your cups "tweaked" at the same time while you were under I am sure they could do that too.... LOL:p

Don't mess with it. Over two years later my should is still messed up from just dislocating it. Shoulders are something we use all the time.

Good Luck

[vicklynn]

TLC97. My dad just called and told me my step mom just dislocated hers 3 weeks ago.
I sure hope she heals up.
Me, if surgery fixes it, Im having it. To many good stories about it to not do it.

[Remali]

Good idea Vick..... I've known a couple people who have had really nice results. Altho no one wants to have surgery, the docs and the procedures are so advanced these days, and the new procedures really reduce recovery and healing time.

[Country Girl 43]

Well glad to hear it's fixable! The recovery time will suck, but you will feel better later. ;)

Thoughts and prayers going out to you.

[offgridgirl]

{{hugs}} preayers for a full speedy recovery from your surgery.
Make sure to ask for the "BEST" surgeon !!;) We want perfection!!!

[vicklynn]

{{hugs}} preayers for a full speedy recovery from your surgery.
Make sure to ask for the "BEST" surgeon !!;) We want perfection!!!
LOL...Im sure they all think they are the best.

[farmers_wife]

Sorry to hear that. My friend had rotator cup surgery and she is still working horses. I hate surgery also. I have trouble coming out of it. Well good luck in whatever you decide.

[FoxFireEMT]

caught up some more... healing prayers & thoughts coming your way.

[hoofservant]

Sorry in advance about the book. ;)

In order to have the incredible range of motion that we have in our shoulders, the joint isn't actually a true ball and socket joint like the hip socket where the head of the femure rides in the asetabulum (hip socket), so its more easily injured. The clavicle and the end of the scapula meet with the head of the humerus, there is a cup of cartilage (labrum) and then ligaments to hold the joint together, its not the most rugged joint in the body. Then there is a network of muscles to move the arm in various directions. Its a fascinating joint and its also injured far more easily than people realize.

Five years ago, I partially came off my squirrelly gelding and to avoid falling underneath of him because my feet got hung up in the stirrups, I ended up hanging off the side of his neck, resulting in a dislocated shoulder. I got off, realized that I couldn't move my arm and of course got back on the horse and went over the jumps a couple more times.

Fast forward to work on Monday, this happened on Saturday, to find out that my health insurance didn't kick in for another three weeks. Groovey. Ended up going to see an orthopedic doc and he did a physical exam, this being on Friday, nearly 7 days after the accident. I'd rolled over on my shoulder in the night and it had gone back into place, so I was back to being able to raise my arm up over my head at this point. As I didn't have insurance and I didn't have a lot of money, I opted to forgo x-rays and an MRI. From the physical exam, the doc diagnosed a partially separated AC (acromio-clavicular) joint and said that we would follow old procedure with those which was to wait six weeks and see if it was better. Mind you, I have a very high tolerance for pain and to me, better means that while it may hurt, I can still get on with my day and life, and the pain is less. Life at that point was massage school and working in a vet clinic as the office manager and a vet tech holding horses' heads to have their teeth floated. So, to me, at that point, I was healed, no matter if it still was painful or felt funny. I opted not to have anything further done with it.

A year later I was working in a doctor's office and about four months later, I have health insurance again. So, I see the doc that I work with and he says, hmmm.. I'd like you to get an MRI of that, it doesn't move right. It shouldn't click like that and it shouldn't sub-lux all the time. (Sub-luxation is a partial dislocation that will go back easily) I said, alrighty and then went off to get an MRI. The MRI showed... tah dah! A suspected labrum tear. Groovey! So, I decided to try some therapy at the clinic, manual therapy like what I do and strengthening exercises, to see if I can avoid surgery. This goes on for months and I was getting to the point that I couldn't reach over patients with my left arm because it was partially dropping out of the socket every time I did it. Not comfy. Driving was unpleasant, in my truck the arm rest was the right height that I could rest my elbow, but when I wanted to reach for anything, like the steering wheel, I had to shrug my shoulder back into place each time. Driving anyone else's vehicle was an exercise in torture. My arm would hang and put terrible pressure and strain on my shoulder back through the scapula and into the clavicle. I spent one Christmas on as much Aleeve as I thought was safe to take, in so much pain I almost couldn't drive home.

Finally, my shoulder went into a terrible spasm at work and I ended up in Urgent Care to see what they could do for me. The doc was a freaking moron, told me in 30 years of medicine he'd never seen this happen before and that I was faking, however here was a script for Flexeril, have a nice day.

Flexeril and Hoofie, very bad combination. Almost as bad as Hoofie and pain medication. Grand.

So, I was talking to one of the Athletic Trainers we had working at the clinic and he told me about the orthopedic surgeon that a buddy of his had fix his ACL. The doc specialized in arthroscopic surgery for shoulders and knees, teaches at Medical College of Ohio through the University of Toledo and is the team surgeon for the athletic department at UofT. The doc had the AT's buddy back up and playing football for the college in five months.

Having worked as a therapist in the town that the clinic I worked in was and working on all the patients from the local surgeons, I knew that there was no way I wanted any of those hacks to cut me open. Not to mention, none of them would do arthroscopic surgery, they still wanted to cut my whole shoulder open, through all the muscles, to expose the joint in order to repair it. Having worked with docs at UofM, I knew I didn't want to get lost in the system over there and the surgeon at St. Joe's in Ypsilanti that was my first pick (SUCH an awesome person) didn't participate in my insurance. So, Dr. Stephen Sademi of Wildwood Clinic in Toledo, OH is who I picked.

I have rules about doctors that get to touch me. Not only do they have to really know their stuff, they better speak to me like I am a person and leave their egos and superiority complexes in their offices. Well, that is what I got: an awesome surgeon who is board certified in type of surgery that I needed, had a great personality, very positive, spoke to his patients like they were people and not numbers and who really knew his stuff. Took me a month to get in to see him for a consult.

I was told by him that a contrast dye MRI is what I should have had done, as well as gotten the imaging done either in a closed or a halo-type MRI. I had mine done in an open MRI (cause I'm claustrophobic) and that also made it more difficult to read the imagining. The layers of musculature, ligaments and tendons that give motion to the shoulder and hold the bones together make it very difficult to pinpoint exactly what is going on and there are a lot of times that more damage is found once they go in to peak and see. Because he was extremely familiar with the type of injury that I had, the labrum tear (of which there are three types, oo fun!), he was able to tell me that he felt after two years from the accident and manual therapy had not helped, surgery was my next option if I didn't want to continue to live with it.

So, I opted for the surgery, had it October 2nd of 2006, three years ago. I woke up and asked the nurse if they'd cut my shoulder open or beat me with a baseball bat. After I looked through the info on the surgery again, I realised that she was right when she said a bit of both. Orthopedic surgery is a bit violent. It involves drills, hammers, sometimes saws, screw divers and what-not. Many orthopetic operating theaters resemble a really expensive and sterile garage. I'd pealed the cartilage ring that holds the head of the humerus in the joint off the bone in the dislocation and hanging off the horse's neck. So they'd abraided both the bone ends that it attached to and the back of the cartilage to make a fresh, bloody surface so that when they put the pieces back together, they would heal as though it was a fresh injury. Then, they drilled holes in the clavicle to pound anchors that my body will eventually absorb, and stitched the labrum back down with a pleat in the cartilage to take up the slack so that the humerus couldn't sag any longer.

Fortuantely it was my left arm, so no practice of bathroom functions was quite needed. However, I did end up wearing a lot of pull up pj bottoms, and we cut the strap of the left side of a couple of tank tops so that I could have tops on. I just used on of the black paper clips for large stacks of paper to clip the ends together. The first shower was the greatest shower of my natural existence. Three days, when I am a daily bather and REALLY like to be clean every day, with no shower was awful. I couldn't get the pressure bandage wet. A cotton sling and a shower chair were my saviors in the shower. The cotton sling I put on to support my arm in the shower so that it wouldn't hang. And the shower chair, well, I sat on that. The only surgery I'd ever had previously was wisdom teeth removal, which was a nightmare in and of itself, so I had NO idea how badly the surgery was going to wipe me out. Trying to take a shower after the surgery was like trying to take a shower after a really bad case of the flu: you feel good to get clean, but just being in the water and trying to bathe yourself is so exhausting its almost too much at the halfway point to even continue. I used a back scrubby brush to wash up into the sling and my arm pit, that scrubby also was what get my RIGHT arm cleaned so that I only had to move my left hand and not try to move the left shoulder too much.

I spent the next 3 and a half weeks in a sling. It was 5 days before I could sleep in my bed again. And that moment was almost as precious to me as the shower. I'd been sleeping in an easy-chair and I was miserable. I did my exercises to keep my elbow, wrist and hand moving, but my shoulder was in one place. At more than one point, I wished that I'd never had the surgery. Percocet made me vomit constantly, I could only sleep for an hour and a half at a time because I couldn't take a whole pill at a time, had to keep chopping them up. After three days of that, I gave up and switched to Aleeve and got 6 hours of un-interrupted sleep. I had an inferential current machine, like a tens-unit but the electrical current is different, from RS Medical that was a huge help. I sat at breakfast every morning and ran through a cycle for pain, then muscle stimulation where the muscles would contract and relax (isometric) and then another pain cycle. Ah, bliss for the pain interruption cycle!

I worked arnica ointment into the area around the cuts and once the stitches were out and the cuts healed over, I worked the ointment into them, too. I took Traumeel and Spascupreel. My supervisor from work came to my house and worked on me. I went to the clinic and had another session done before I went back to work.

When I finally got to be out of the sling and start moving, I discovered that I'd ended up with a frozen shoulder from the surgery and the lack of movement for 3 and a half weeks. Fortunately, I did all the rehab that I needed at the clinic that I was an employee at. I never had traditional physical therapy. It wasn't until almost 6 months after surgery that I had a PT check my shoulder, and was told that it was doing great. The clinic I worked at as a manual therapist specializes in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, mostly patients who've tried everything else and we were the last resort for all sorts of pain issues. Many had had surgery and many were trying to avoid it. I spent a lot of time in the pool both being worked on by one of the manual therapists and also doing passive and active exercises. That pool was pure heaven! The osteopath that was my boss worked on me, I had pressure release therapy 3 times per week and I did exercises daily. I kept up with the inferential current machine at the office and after 3 months, sent back the home unit.

At the five month point, the orthopedic doc turned me loose and told me to go out and do whatever I wanted. I didn't have the heart to tell him that I'd been on my horse 2 days after I'd gotten out of the sling. Gypsy had tiptoed down the road with me on her back, trying not to jar me. I made a whole half mile ride and that was the end of that. But I was back on my horse! I will also say something else in his praise: Dr. Sademi never, ever made me feel like his time was more important than my exam or my questions. I had terrible memory problems after the surgery, the anethesia lingers in your body longer than you think, and he never made me feel like I was crazy. Every visit, I saw his PA and then he came in to see me, check my ROM and progress and talk with me. I told a lot of people about him and spent time in with one of the clinics patients telling her about how awesome my experience with him was before her rotator cuff surgery.

Three years later, I still have to be diligent with my arm exercises. If my deltoids and other muscles get too weak, I get uncomfortable and the head of the humerus doesn't quite ride right in the labrum. I also still get manual therapy on it, the AC still doesn't seat correctly, and the head of the humeros, because of the pleat in the cartilage, will displace a bit, pulling on the tissues. I have to be aware and put the strap for my massage table case on my right shoulder and use my left hand to pick the table or it makes AC joint problem worse and I get numbness and pain in that arm.

Once you've dislocated a shoulder, even with it repaired, you are 75% more likely to do it again. This injury and surgery ended my fledgling hobby for rock climbing and rapelling, I am even nervous on a horse because I REALLY don't want to re-injure and potentially have to have surgery again. People have no idea how easy it is, reaching back to pick up your heavy purse out of the back seat is enough to cause a partial dislocation and a labrum tear. I have 95% mobility in my shoulder, 20% better than the doc thought I'd have. Working on horses, having to reach up and around them, was a big part of my mobility, the rehab is the other. Having the team that worked on me at the clinic, first gently softening the insulted tissues, then moving into light stretching and then exercising both in and out of the pool, was what I needed to recover from the surgery and the previous injury.

One of my co-workers ended up with the same surgery, different doc, who sent him to a PT that specialized in shoulder surgeries. The PT pushed him too far and too fast and 2.5 years later, he barely has 60% mobility and range of motion in his shoulder.

Ask questions, demand a Board Certified Orthopedic surgeon, try to find one that does arthroscopic surgery (smaller cuts through the fascia and the muscle mean shorter healing times) if you are a candidate, someone who specializes in shoulders is best and one that has a lot of surgeries under his/her belt. Don't be afraid to tell your PT that they are being too agressive in the rehab and hurting you. Don't be afraid to ask for massage (and don't let the massage therapist hurt you either!) to help soften the tissues. If you can find an osteopath in your area that does osteopathic manipulation therapy and muscle energy techniques, you will really get a great deal of benefit from that in your rehab as well.

Do I regret having the surgery? Heck no! Do I wish that I'd had it sooner? Nope. I had the surgery at exactly the right time, when I had the right people to help me recover and rehab.

[vicklynn]

Book, he!! girl, that was a novel:hysterical: A good one though.

I will try my hardest to get the best. This is work comp, but I will fight them if they give me someone I dont feel up to the job. Yes, I am looking for arthroscopic surgery. The Dr referring me to the ortho Doc, said thats what will probably happen.

Thanks for your info. I will come back and take notes for sure.

[JackieB]

Sorry you're hurt a bit there, Vick. We'll be looking forward to you letting us know that you are all better!

[hoofservant]

:) I'm a detail person... and they tend to get away from me when I am not careful. Heh! Novels R Us!!

Not sure where you are, vicklyn, however if you are anywhere near Northern OH in the Toledo area, I highly recommend Dr. Stephen Saddemi, or even up to Ypsilanti and see Dr. David Janda. If you are near Jasper, IN, Dr. Dan Eby is also an excellent orthopedic surgeon.

As a heads up for dealing with workers comp insurance, they can be a real PITA. Workers comp and auto insurance will only pay for treatement to areas of the body that they agree is the injury site. So, if you have neck and back pain, or lower arm pain as a result of the strain put on your body by the shoulder injury and the ins co only agrees to treat the rotator cuff tear, they will not pay for any rehab or treatment for your neck and back or lower arm. The only way to get other areas treated is to get them diagnosed as soon as possibly by a physician and get the ins co to agree that they are related problems to the shoulder injury.

Western medicine refers to people predominantly as a piece and a part, not as a whole being. So its difficult to get a part of the body that is directly attacted to the injury treated and looked at as part of the injury even peripherally, such as the neck or musculature that ends up supporting the injured part of the body and doing a job that it wasn't designed to do.

I can pretty much guarantee that if you don't have pain from it now, you will in the future. Often times the pain of the main injury masks issues with other parts of the body that are directly attached to the injury. If you think about how the musculature attaches to the cervical spine and up and over into the clavicle, and so on, as muscles aren't supporting the shoulder girdle, the area will sag and put a lot of strain on other areas of the body. So, be aware that you could end up with pain in other areas of the body from compensation patterns.

I hope it goes well for you and I look forward to hearing about your surgery and recovery.

[vicklynn]

I have the neck pain entered from this, so IF I can get the ortho doc to get me some help, that would be nice.
The one doc says he wont give me a script for a chiro. He went on talking about stroke, ect. Like who dosnt know that and take the chance....duh. I will continue to complain about the neck issues until they get up off their @ss.
Ive delt with Work Comp in the past, and agree, unless you know what is going on right away, they wont cover it. I had a stomach muscle issue that was masking a back issue. All is good now from that, but damn, ya sure learn a hard lesson.
I go see the surgeon on Wed, I will push him for more help. There are notes in my records about my neck.
I have a copy of my records already. Im not letting them play me this time. Different state, but still Work Comp.

[hoofservant]

Well, push for it. However make sure that the ortho doc doesn't just refer you to another surgeon. If you have records proving that this is a fresh injury and its not an aggravation of an old injury, that makes it that much easier to get it pushed through. Workers Comp, once you GET them to pay for something, can be great. However, like any other insurance company, they really aren't there to help you. They are there to help their stock holders, the customer (employers) and their bottom line.

Lots of physicians are against chiros just for the fact that their means of treating a person, depending on the chiro, can be through violent adjustments. And for me personally, I dont' let anyone directly adjust my neck. No way, no how. Too scarey for me. I've had it done, didnt' like it, won't do it again.

Ask your ortho if he/she knows an osteopath that does osteopathic manipulation or better yet muscle energy techniques and cranial work. Will help in a huge way. If they don't know, look on the American Osteopathic Association's website. That will point you.

If you live in an area where there is an osteopathic college, its that much easier to find someone.

[vicklynn]

Well, check him out, see what you think?
http://www.healthgrades.com/directory_search/physician/profiles/dr-md-reports/Dr-John-Putnam-MD-80C61EC3.cfm

[TheBadLands]

:( I'm sorry Vick... I hope all comes together.. *gives our front end loader the evil eye*

[Petra]

I'm glad they can get you fixed Vick! Hope the surgery goes well.
I only had one surgery done in my life; really didn't care for it. I feel for you. Good luck!

[vicklynn]

Ya. I dont like surgery. I dont like some of the meds they give you. I take one tramadol and 1/2 a muscle relaxer and wohooo its party time. Im looped to the hills. Dosnt make the pain go away, but I forget its there and am one Happy camper. After a couple of days of that, I get mad. I hate being stoned.
I went with some friends to a Farm Fest. I had taken some meds. They could not leave me unattended, Id of gotten lost. Can you believe that. Heck, the husband had to drive my truck to and from, I wasnt driving.
I had surgery once, some scope thing done. I had to take some drugs before hand, in the waiting room, and I started crying, Im serious, I hate feeling that way that bad.
When the Dr told me I had to see a surgeon, that I will probably have surgery, I cried. All I could think about was MORE drugs.
I have some, the tramadol and muscle relaxer, but I take them at night. Cant be stoned if your asleep!!!
My appt is on Monday morning. Ill find out what is going on then.

[hoofservant]

vicklynn, my cousin is a Nurse Practitioner in Forsythe, MO. I'll pop her a line and see if she's heard of him and what she's heard.

That is a nifty site. However, I am not liking that you have to pay to get the report information that is most pertinent: Board Certifications, specialities, experience, patient ratings and most important - professional misconduct. Although the last you can contact the state of MO and get the information from the MO Board of Medicine. They have to tell you if he's had any malpractice suits or misconduct investigations.

[vicklynn]

Cool! Thanks. I go see him Monday.