Should i get shoulder reconstruction surgery?

Hi!

I got a call back from the hospital today... after spending 5-7 months on a waiting list, i got a call about pre-registration for the surgery...

Hmmm.... what should i do...

The surgery itself isn't scary... it's the possible consequences...

I've dislocated my shoulder 5 times in 5 years (twice last year). It's always stupid things... landing a big air... touching a tree with my hands in the woods... Only the first accident was a big deal... I landed short a 30ft jump at Jay Peak... In fact, all the incident occured there! (Except one)

Needless to say, it affects me in the winter... Now i don't do jumps or rails, i stick to groomers and trees... I jump but not in the park...

In the summer, it doesn't bother me... I go to the bike park and dirt jumps... I ride XC, Downhill and road without any problems... I've had a couple of good bails but it never seemed like a problem...

Right now, all the joints are loose... It's 100% painless... It's just loose... the operation should be easy... I should recover quickly and be back on my board by the end of January (assuming the operation is in late october)

So, should i get the operation?

Anyone in here had good experience? Bad experience?

I know 4 people who had the operation and 3 of them had no problems...

I need your input!

Thanks for any feedback!

It depends want is more important and are you willing to sacrifice?

1) Winter

OR

2) Summer

If you can't decided, and you'll be back on the slopes by end of January, I would say bit the bullet and go now. You will only be missing one good quality month (December skiing is always uncertain).

If you can sacrifise Summer and you can easily reschedule surgery wait until the season is over.

Even for the most obvious situation, I would never vote on such a personal decision as surgery. But based on my personal experiences with the rehabilitation of fundamental injuries, I'd recommend that you consider these questions before you go under the knife:

1) Do you *know* your surgeon enough to trust his ability to set you up for a "fast" recovery?

If you can't answer this question, talk to the physical therapist you will work with for your post-recovery recovery. Although most therapists will not comment on the relative merits of each surgeon, some will make a comment like "I like working with his/her patients because they recover more quickly than other surgeon's patients." You want that particular surgeon.

2) Realize that that your physical therapist is just as important as your surgeon is. In fact, your relationship with your physical therapist will probably become deeper and more personal than your relationship with your surgeon. Respect this relationship!! But, if you have not lined up your physical therapist--including your first 3-4 appointments, you are NOT ready for surgery.

3) Are you committed to working hard every day in order to recover? The surgeon can splice your tissues together and your physical therapist can manipulate you and also show you certain exercises needed to recover. But you cannot recover without committing to the pain and sweat that you must invest each day. Moreover, you must not believe that you will feel better each day--you won't. Recovery will not feel like a steady up-trend to health?so you will not get positive feedback each day. You will have days that you will believe that you will feel terrible for the rest of you life. Nevertheless, you must have the commitment to push through. Many people do not....

4) Do you have the right physical therapist? I've had PT's who were true healers and I've had lazy types who are not proactive and knowledgeable. Recogize that PT is just as much a dicipline as surgery.

Finally, look at the long-term benefit/pain ratio. Ask the quesion "If I do not have the surgery, is my future more likey going to be filled suffering from arthritis? Will you likely be improved by having the surgery? From your post, I?d suspect that you feel the need to repair and rehabilitate this injury. But I?d reexamine the points 1-3 above before commiting to surgery,.

Best wishes and I hope it works out,
Jeff

I've had more than my share of surgery to repair skiing injuries. What lookn4powder says about rehab is true, but I don't get the feeling that motivation to work hard and get better is going to be a problem in your case.

However, I'm shocked you spent the better part of 6 MONTHS on a waiting list. That's crazy! When I blew my left leg to pieces I spent the better part of a year listening to in-network orthopaedic surgeons tell me how they were going to do this and that before more surgery. It was clear to everyone that the leg was in need of extensive surgery, but these assholes blew it off and made me suffer, then performed a half-assed job that failed and almost cost me the leg.

I was lucky and had out of network coverage as well, so I was able to go to the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan and had one of the world's best take my case. He looked at my leg on a Friday and scheduled the first surgery to fix it the FOLLOWING MONDAY. It was all uphill after that.

I don't mean to scare you, but the fact that you were forced to wait so long makes me wonder about the motivations of your doctor. Maybe it was because your injury wasn't as crippling as mine and you were functional. Still, I'd look into that carefully before letting him cut you.

Let me preface my opinion by saying that i've never had any sort of reconstructive surgury as an adult.

It would say that it seems like this injury is only going to get worse with the passage of time, and not better. So you may as well get it done sooner rather than later, since operations tend to suck more the older you get.

just my 2 cents.

JimG.":vhmyypol said:

I don't mean to scare you, but the fact that you were forced to wait so long makes me wonder about the motivations of your doctor. Maybe it was because your injury wasn't as crippling as mine and you were functional.

Click to expand...

This is one of the disavantages of our Canadian Health Care. I guess it can't be perfect.

I entirely agree about the physical therapist, this can make a huge difference.

Patrick":3u1njk2e said:

This is one of the disavantages of our Canadian Health Care. I guess it can't be perfect.

Click to expand...

Ah! That explains alot. Never even considered that healthcare is dispensed in a different manner in Canada.

Since this is the case, I would recommend immediate surgery. As Jonny D says, the longer you wait the older you get and the harder it is to heal up.

Thanks everyone for the answers...

First, the surgeon was recommended by 3 physical therapists. He's emphasis on sport related injury.

Then, my sister is a physical therapist... But she lives to far... One of my friend's dad has a huge sports clinics near my house... I've been there already (last season) and found the most reliable therapist.

I think i'm ready for surgery... and thanks to my new job, i'm getting paid for getting injured! Everything is paid for and i'm getting full salary while at home recovering... Not as bad as i thought!

Right now i have to get on Ebay to buy some more Xbox games!

Thanks again for the feedback, it's really appreciated!

BigJay":4mgauaa4 said:

First, the surgeon was recommended by 3 physical therapists. He's emphasis on sport related injury.

I think i'm ready for surgery... and thanks to my new job, i'm getting paid for getting injured! Everything is paid for and i'm getting full salary while at home recovering... Not as bad as i thought!

Click to expand...

That's key; I had 2 doctors at HSS, one for my broken left leg and one for my dislocated right knee. Both are on staff to several pro sports franchises. You've done your homework!

You'll hear this from your therapist, but I'll say it anyway...get back to regular activities like work as soon as you can. Try to avoid sitting around. Activity=recovery.

Good luck and if you have any questions, ask.

Good luck, my first chiropractor made things worse, my first physical therapist made things worse, both doctors I saw recommended surgery, and I was getting ready for back/neck surgery when I saw this really good osteopath as a last ditch attempt to avoid surgery, who recommended me to another pt. This pt saved me from surgery, and got me going and back into all my sports in a month, and have me fixed up in 3. That's how much the right pt can matter. The worst part about this (besides incompetant doctors/therapists)... I'm only 16.