Opinion on Shoulder Surgery Please

[kenshireen]

Here's my situation:
63 yO...good athlete; legs great etc. except shoulder.
MRI shows posterior labral tear; and supraspinatus tear (not sure if full or partial)

Orthoped (well known in ATL) says you can't really be sure what's going on until you scope.
I can hit FH; BH without any real pain.. I can serve a slice with a little pain.. If I try to serve a hard flat serve when I come straight down..it hurts alot...then my shoulder gets tender and FH's get a little sore.

I am on the fence about surgery. it would be acromial decompression and debridement of any frayed tendons... My concern is that I would be out of playing for probably 6 months depending upon what type of work they had to do. I can play now but my serve is much weaker than it used to be.. same for OH.

What do I do...there are always inherent risks in any surgery but I'm concerned that I might damage something in the surgery and not be able to play at all.

Any advice?

The Dr's name is Dr 'X' out of Emory

Thanks,
Ken

 

[DoubleWindsor]

Well you said it yourself, there are always inherent risks with surgery. But with a surgery like this (just the decomp and debride) the risks are not as great as with other surgeries. I would say it all depends on how much the game of tennis means to you.

 

[ab70]

if there indeed SLAP tear than you would have to fix to avoid pain in front of the shoulder and it gets worse with time. Considering your age, they would also recommend bicep tenodesis to avoid further issues with labrum...

I am 9 month post OP and just starting playing again, still not 100%n pain free but recovry time varies...

 

[mike53]

Here's my situation:
63 yO...good athlete; legs great etc. except shoulder.
MRI shows posterior labral tear; and supraspinatus tear (not sure if full or partial)

Orthoped (well known in ATL) says you can't really be sure what's going on until you scope.
I can hit FH; BH without any real pain.. I can serve a slice with a little pain.. If I try to serve a hard flat serve when I come straight down..it hurts alot...then my shoulder gets tender and FH's get a little sore.

I am on the fence about surgery. it would be acromial decompression and debridement of any frayed tendons... My concern is that I would be out of playing for probably 6 months depending upon what type of work they had to do. I can play now but my serve is much weaker than it used to be.. same for OH.

What do I do...there are always inherent risks in any surgery but I'm concerned that I might damage something in the surgery and not be able to play at all.

Any advice?

The Dr's name is Dr 'X' out of Emory

Thanks,
Ken

Ken,

Have you been doing any kind of prehab/rehab program? I was in a similar situation to yours and I got major relief from a targeted exercise program called the "throwers ten program". Take a look at page 30 in this link:

http://books.google.com/books?id=uX...sult&ct=result&resnum=10#v=onepage&q=&f=false

Although this is working for me, it may not work for everyone. But it couldn't hurt to work it for 3-6 months before committing to the surgical alternative. My problem with the docs and their pictures is that you can't tell how old the tears are. You could have torn something when you were 20 (like I probably did in a motorcycle accident). Now your are looking at the tear 40 years later but the actual problem at hand is something else. Like referred pain from impingement due to micro-instabilities. Stabilize the joint, strengthen the joint capsule and you may end up better than you were before.

 

[kenshireen]

Ken,

Have you been doing any kind of prehab/rehab program? I was in a similar situation to yours and I got major relief from a targeted exercise program called the "throwers ten program". Take a look at page 30 in this link:

[Exercise 3a) 90 degree shoulder abduction.. My PT always has me doing this straigt out in front om my body rather than to the side. Do you think it makes a difference either way biomechanically... Did you buy Ellenbeckers book? Looks like it is excellent.

 

[danlalane]

Also, if you are prone to inflammation. Ie throwing your back out, stiff necks, tennis elbow, etc. I would skip surgery as it could make things worse. ie your body will tighten up further and make matters worse. This is what happened to me. I had surgery and am much worse off than I was. All the muscles in my shoulder are hypertonic as a result of the surgery. I have been in PT for almost a year 2x a week.

 

[mike53]

[Exercise 3a) 90 degree shoulder abduction.. My PT always has me doing this straigt out in front om my body rather than to the side. Do you think it makes a difference either way biomechanically...

Yes I think it makes a difference and I would do both. In my workouts, I include several movements various therapists have prescribed for me over the years in my overall workout, but I always do the ten program exercises exactly as specified. My reasoning is that the exercises included in the "throwers ten" have been scientifically proven to exercise the exact muscles used to stabilize the shoulder when performing high speed overhead arm movements.

Did you buy Ellenbeckers book? Looks like it is excellent.

I haven't bought the book because my problems are no longer acute and I seem to be getting better after I started doing the exercise program. But I would buy it immediately if problems were to resurface.

 

[drak]

Also, if you are prone to inflammation. Ie throwing your back out, stiff necks, tennis elbow, etc. I would skip surgery as it could make things worse. ie your body will tighten up further and make matters worse. This is what happened to me. I had surgery and am much worse off than I was. All the muscles in my shoulder are hypertonic as a result of the surgery. I have been in PT for almost a year 2x a week.

Amigo, I thought the second surgery went well and you were quickly on the way back - has that changed?

Drak