SLAP Tear Repair - Questions/Experiences/Feedback

[MSUspartans]

I wanted to gather some insight into how others have handled this injury. I've gone through the search history on the forum and found some great responses, however, I wanted a more current update as some of those threads are quite old.

TLDR - I've managed bicep tendonitis and some nagging shoulder soreness for awhile. Fixed some technical issues in my server / forehand which alleviated the bicep issue and helped the shoulder calm down only to fall on my outstretched arm playing soccer.... Gave it 4 weeks of rest and jumped back into tennis full tilt. In the middle of a match, I felt a rip in my shoulder while serving. MRI confirmed that it's a significant SLAP tear that possibly extends into the anterior portion of my shoulder.

Ortho isn't pushing surgical repair but simply said that if tennis is a passion he would recommend it as the tear is a 6/10 bad. Context, I'm 33 and a strong 5.0 on a good day. I hit big on both groundstrokes and I have a big serve. My touch game could use work lol

- Was the surgery worth it?
- Did your game suffer after recovery?
- Has anyone successfully rehabbed the injury to avoid surgery?
- Anyone use peptides to assist with postop recovery or use them instead of surgery?

I've seen some successful recoveries like Haas and Sharapova. Tennis is a passion so I'd like to return but the surgery makes me nervous. Thanks in advance! I hope this thread is helpful to more than just me.

 

[Say Chi Sin Lo]

I have some experience with shoulder surgeries (2x), so before I continue, how involved is the shoulder so far? (Can only speak on the shoulder stuff)

But generally speaking, I too had nagging tears that just did not want to heal on their own.

Was the surgery worth it?
- If you're willing to, and enjoyed the suffering of rehab, yes. If you're not, no.
Did your game suffer after recovery?
- Immediately after? Medically clear vs sports ready are two different thing. Tennis was a painful experience for a year or 2 after my surgeries. But now, no one knows unless I tell them.
Anyone use peptides to assist with postop recovery or use them instead of surgery?
- What peptides are you talking about? But as far as I know, no "peptides" will help with the crosslinking of collagen. I have a background in cell and molecular biology and unless multiple studies have been peer reviewed, I don't buy it. Please don't fall for scummy marketing BS.

One other note, Haas, Sharapova, and other professional athletes have access to resources that mere mortals like me and you won't have access to (well maybe you do, but I'm not in that tax bracket). I wouldn't use professional athletes recovery programs as a blueprint for your own.

 

[MSUspartans]

I have some experience with shoulder surgeries (2x), so before I continue, how involved is the shoulder so far? (Can only speak on the shoulder stuff)

But generally speaking, I too had nagging tears that just did not want to heal on their own.

Was the surgery worth it?
- If you're willing to, and enjoyed the suffering of rehab, yes. If you're not, no.
Did your game suffer after recovery?
- Immediately after? Medically clear vs sports ready are two different thing. Tennis was a painful experience for a year or 2 after my surgeries. But now, no one knows unless I tell them.
Anyone use peptides to assist with postop recovery or use them instead of surgery?
- What peptides are you talking about? But as far as I know, no "peptides" will help with the crosslinking of collagen. I have a background in cell and molecular biology and unless multiple studies have been peer reviewed, I don't buy it. Please don't fall for scummy marketing BS.

One other note, Haas, Sharapova, and other professional athletes have access to resources that mere mortals like me and you won't have access to (well maybe you do, but I'm not in that tax bracket). I wouldn't use professional athletes recovery programs as a blueprint for your own.

First, thank you for responding.

- My SLAP tear extends through multiple quadrants. It involves both the posterior superior quadrant and extends into the posterior inferior quadrant and anterior superior quadrant, possibly reaching the anterior inferior labrum as well.

- There is a para-labral cyst, which suggests that the tear has been there for a while and may be causing irritation.

- No full-thickness rotator cuff tear which means it's affected by tendinitis and a partial tear, but it’s not completely torn.

I would be very dedicated to a physical therapy routine. When I asked if you're game suffered, I mean when you're shoulder returned to normal function did you lose anything? Significant power on serve / groundstrokes? Inability to hit a kick server or other shots?

As far as peptides go, I've seen some very interesting things about the use of BP-157 and TB-500 post op to assist with recovery. I can assure you that I'm not falling for marketing hype, instead I'm just researching as much as I can. There are too many positive anecdotes in the world of body building to ignore completely. There are other compounds that are well researched that could help as well like HGH / IGF-1 but I'm unsure about going down that road even with the supervision of a doctor. From what I understand, a labrum tear will never heal completely on it's own, it's been torn away and needs to be surgically put back so it can heal properly. However, I would regret if I didn't explore all options before officially signaling yes to surgery.

I would assume professional athletes have a lot more at their disposal but I'm not sure what else they could get that others can't. The only other real cost prohibitive option for these types of injuries are stem cell therapy which I'm definitely not pursuing. I'm not in that tax bracket either. I mentioned Haas and Sharapova because there isn't a ton of information on these types of injuries at the professional level. Haas had three surgeries and came back; pretty inspiring.

I just want to know that I'll be able to play tennis again at a solid level.

 

[Say Chi Sin Lo]

First, thank you for responding.

- My SLAP tear extends through multiple quadrants. It involves both the posterior superior quadrant and extends into the posterior inferior quadrant and anterior superior quadrant, possibly reaching the anterior inferior labrum as well.

- There is a para-labral cyst, which suggests that the tear has been there for a while and may be causing irritation.

- No full-thickness rotator cuff tear which means it's affected by tendinitis and a partial tear, but it’s not completely torn.

I would be very dedicated to a physical therapy routine. When I asked if you're game suffered, I mean when you're shoulder returned to normal function did you lose anything? Significant power on serve / groundstrokes? Inability to hit a kick server or other shots?

As far as peptides go, I've seen some very interesting things about the use of BP-157 and TB-500 post op to assist with recovery. I can assure you that I'm not falling for marketing hype, instead I'm just researching as much as I can. There are too many positive anecdotes in the world of body building to ignore completely. There are other compounds that are well researched that could help as well like HGH / IGF-1 but I'm unsure about going down that road even with the supervision of a doctor. From what I understand, a labrum tear will never heal completely on it's own, it's been torn away and needs to be surgically put back so it can heal properly. However, I would regret if I didn't explore all options before officially signaling yes to surgery.

I would assume professional athletes have a lot more at their disposal but I'm not sure what else they could get that others can't. The only other real cost prohibitive option for these types of injuries are stem cell therapy which I'm definitely not pursuing. I'm not in that tax bracket either. I mentioned Haas and Sharapova because there isn't a ton of information on these types of injuries at the professional level. Haas had three surgeries and came back; pretty inspiring.

I just want to know that I'll be able to play tennis again at a solid level.

I had partial supraspinatus tears on two separate occasions, just bad luck I guess.

My shoulder did return to normal and full function with maybe 95% of internal rotation ROM due to scaring from the 2x surgeries, but that's inconsequential to my daily life and tennis as a whole. Tennis wise, as I mentioned, no one knows I had this injury history unless I tell them. I have zero limitations on all things tennis related. I play singles and I've honestly never thought twice about my shoulder since fully recovered. I don't wear any bracing and what not.

Take it from someone with a scientific background and has worked in several labs, there's been no peer reviewed articles suggesting these growth factors are truly aiding in tissue repair. You mentioned body building and its advocacy in the world of body building with growth factors, but you're not growing muscles necessarily. Sure, maybe you're building more muscle mass and strength in the surrounding tissue to provide additional support for the injured/healing joint, but it has not been shown to have a measurable contribution in collagen deposition and crosslinking of the injured tendon and return it back to the original elasticity and tensile strength.

As for stem cells, likewise, no direct evidence suggesting integration of mesenchymal stem cells that has gone through differentiation into functioning somatic cells for that particular tissue, in this case, the site of injury. But of course, good chance I may have missed some of the more recent literature and impossible for me to read everything under the sun. It sounds like you've done your share of research and will continue to do so, so I will end my piece regarding these "novel" treatments.

For reference, people say I'm more of a 4.5 singles player, averages 3-5x of 2 hours tennis per week. Most recent surgery at 22, and now an elderly 40 now.

If you like, message me and I can send you some videos of me playing, and you can judge for yourself what you can expect post-rehab.

 

[MSUspartans]

I had partial supraspinatus tears on two separate occasions, just bad luck I guess.

My shoulder did return to normal and full function with maybe 95% of internal rotation ROM due to scaring from the 2x surgeries, but that's inconsequential to my daily life and tennis as a whole. Tennis wise, as I mentioned, no one knows I had this injury history unless I tell them. I have zero limitations on all things tennis related. I play singles and I've honestly never thought twice about my shoulder since fully recovered. I don't wear any bracing and what not.

Take it from someone with a scientific background and has worked in several labs, there's been no peer reviewed articles suggesting these growth factors are truly aiding in tissue repair. You mentioned body building and its advocacy in the world of body building with growth factors, but you're not growing muscles necessarily. Sure, maybe you're building more muscle mass and strength in the surrounding tissue to provide additional support for the injured/healing joint, but it has not been shown to have a measurable contribution in collagen deposition and crosslinking of the injured tendon and return it back to the original elasticity and tensile strength.

As for stem cells, likewise, no direct evidence suggesting integration of mesenchymal stem cells that has gone through differentiation into functioning somatic cells for that particular tissue, in this case, the site of injury. But of course, good chance I may have missed some of the more recent literature and impossible for me to read everything under the sun. It sounds like you've done your share of research and will continue to do so, so I will end my piece regarding these "novel" treatments.

For reference, people say I'm more of a 4.5 singles player, averages 3-5x of 2 hours tennis per week. Most recent surgery at 22, and now an elderly 40 now.

If you like, message me and I can send you some videos of me playing, and you can judge for yourself what you can expect post-rehab.

I really appreciate you sharing your experiences. I've combed the internet looking to frame a SLAP tear repair in context of tennis. I've been reading a lot into baseball cases because throwing / serving are so similar and there's not a ton online about returning to tennis.

I do see that our injuries are slightly different. I have a significant injury to the labrum and yours was more specific to the rotator cuff. Both are really tough but I've read that labrum reattachment is much tougher to manage / come back from. You also mentioned your surgeries were a long time ago? I absolutely love reading that your recovered to the point that it's a non issue and that gives me a lot of hope.

I definitely take your opinion on these compounds seriously. I doubt their efficacy in repairing anything to a meaningful extent on their own but when used as add on part of an entire rehab program it looks like they could be beneficial. It just interesting when you read or listen to certain anecdotes that tout their efficacy. I have extensive questions during my pre-op appointment this week.

Thanks again for conversing with me.

 

[Say Chi Sin Lo]

I really appreciate you sharing your experiences. I've combed the internet looking to frame a SLAP tear repair in context of tennis. I've been reading a lot into baseball cases because throwing / serving are so similar and there's not a ton online about returning to tennis.

I do see that our injuries are slightly different. I have a significant injury to the labrum and yours was more specific to the rotator cuff. Both are really tough but I've read that labrum reattachment is much tougher to manage / come back from. You also mentioned your surgeries were a long time ago? I absolutely love reading that your recovered to the point that it's a non issue and that gives me a lot of hope.

I definitely take your opinion on these compounds seriously. I doubt their efficacy in repairing anything to a meaningful extent on their own but when used as add on part of an entire rehab program it looks like they could be beneficial. It just interesting when you read or listen to certain anecdotes that tout their efficacy. I have extensive questions during my pre-op appointment this week.

Thanks again for conversing with me.

I should note that my 2nd surgery also repaired a partially torn posterior labrum. The MRI didn't pick it up, but it was discovered during my surgery and repaired on the spot. I didn't mention it because it didn't change my rehab program aside from extending it. But you can imagine my surprise when I woke up and my doctor was like "Oh yeah, you tore your labrum too, but we got it."

My surgery was a long time ago, and I believe I had youth on my side being in my early 20's at the time, but I was also a gym rat back then. Whatever my therapist told me to do, I made sure it became a two-a-day while not over taxing the surgically repaired shoulder.

I think if your injury will respond without surgery, you have a lot more options as far as treatment is concerned. But you want it to heal heal, not an injury that you sort of management through for the rest of your life. If you go the surgical route, you'd have a fairly good outcome because surgical technique has advanced so much nowadays. But after that, it's head down, grit your teeth sort of rehab. Because remember, you're not just restoring function to the joint, you're expecting it to go beyond what it was evolved to do, and that is high performance sports related activity and load.

 

[MSUspartans]

I should note that my 2nd surgery also repaired a partially torn posterior labrum. The MRI didn't pick it up, but it was discovered during my surgery and repaired on the spot. I didn't mention it because it didn't change my rehab program aside from extending it. But you can imagine my surprise when I woke up and my doctor was like "Oh yeah, you tore your labrum too, but we got it."

My surgery was a long time ago, and I believe I had youth on my side being in my early 20's at the time, but I was also a gym rat back then. Whatever my therapist told me to do, I made sure it became a two-a-day while not over taxing the surgically repaired shoulder.

I think if your injury will respond without surgery, you have a lot more options as far as treatment is concerned. But you want it to heal heal, not an injury that you sort of management through for the rest of your life. If you go the surgical route, you'd have a fairly good outcome because surgical technique has advanced so much nowadays. But after that, it's head down, grit your teeth sort of rehab. Because remember, you're not just restoring function to the joint, you're expecting it to go beyond what it was evolved to do, and that is high performance sports related activity and load.

I really appreciate the dialogue. I've decided to postpone surgical repair until the fall for a variety of reasons. I'm going to follow a physical therapy program combined with a round of BPC 157 and TB 500 to see if I can manage it for the next couple of months. It's improved dramatically and the ortho gave his approval. I'm not expecting miracles. The ortho states that he's seen success in his practice with the use of peptides to manage these injuries for a short period of time. Repairing it in the fall will help me prepare for the rehabilitation better. I'll update this as I go. Thanks again.

 

[MSUspartans]

I'm in the middle of figuring out what to do with a shoulder issue too, nothing as rough as a 6/10 SLAP tear, but enough to mess with my serve

I've started a 10 week cycle of CJC, BPC 157, and TB 500 peptides. So far so good. I have full range of motion back but it's definitely not the same. Time will tell.

 

[SMelti77]

so how is monitoring going?

 

[MSUspartans]

so how is monitoring going?

I'm about 4 months out since the injury. I decided to run a cycle of three peptides + physical therapy. So far, so good.

I don't want oversell it and claim I'm healed, however I've been able to recover enough to just start playing tennis again. Groundstrokes aren't really an issue but serving is still a work in progress. Shoulder doesn't have any pain but I do feel a little instability at times. I also have to limit my playing time during the week at the moment.

I plan to cycle the peptides one more time and continue to give the shoulder time to heal and strengthen up. At the moment, I'm happy I decided to go down this path instead of surgery. That option will always be there from what I've been told.

 

[SMelti77]

thanks for the feedback!
im just curious how threatments with peptides work to enhance recovery. I am struggling on and off with patella tendonitis/nosis and was considering some alternative threatment to my usual strength and plyometric plan for my knees to finally get rid of it completely. A complete pause from tennis (which is probably the only proper way) is a pain for me to even consider.

As far as I researched, there are plenty of people using - or atleast promoting- these peptides and their healing capabilities. The interest of other supposedly injured people is high and they ask in comments how recovery is going, and 95% of the time there is no repply to those questions. The 5% where there is response, like in your case - people can´t really tell if their recovery happened because they decided to go for the peptide therapy or just of other sources like physical therapy, rehab plans or break from the activity which aggrevated the injury.

My conclusion for myself after 4 weeks of many conversations and research is, that i stick to my moderate rehab plan which works - but takes time. Shortcuts in life always sound to good to be true .

 

[MSUspartans]

thanks for the feedback!
im just curious how threatments with peptides work to enhance recovery. I am struggling on and off with patella tendonitis/nosis and was considering some alternative threatment to my usual strength and plyometric plan for my knees to finally get rid of it completely. A complete pause from tennis (which is probably the only proper way) is a pain for me to even consider.

As far as I researched, there are plenty of people using - or atleast promoting- these peptides and their healing capabilities. The interest of other supposedly injured people is high and they ask in comments how recovery is going, and 95% of the time there is no repply to those questions. The 5% where there is response, like in your case - people can´t really tell if their recovery happened because they decided to go for the peptide therapy or just of other sources like physical therapy, rehab plans or break from the activity which aggrevated the injury.

My conclusion for myself after 4 weeks of many conversations and research is, that i stick to my moderate rehab plan which works - but takes time. Shortcuts in life always sound to good to be true .

If you research the three peptides I listed you will understand what they do and how they work synergistically together. I do believe there is too much positive anecdotal and clinical evidence to dismiss them entirely. I've seen really positive results in my situation but again, I won't oversell it as I'm definitely not fully healed. However, when combined with a solid PT program, I've managed to start playing again. I play 4 sets in total over the past week that included 80% full serve speed. I'm going to continue to take it slow and only return to official match play in the spring or the earliest this fall for light doubles.

I would definitely not classify peptide therapy as a shortcut. I wouldn't even say it's a one for one replacement for surgery but it's worked well so far. Far cheaper than surgery as well...


I've experienced the same thing while researching online. When you do read a positive experience, the user rarely logs back online to talk about it. Maybe because they've happily recovered or maybe they were just a burner account promoting peptides? I went through a physician to get them instead of the online sources. Any plan will require a break from tennis. I'll try to continue to update my recovery for others benefit. Just currently started a second cycle.