Unstable Shoulder: will an operation always work?

Most patients, who have new instability after a surgery to fix shoulder instability, DON’T want more surgery.  http://www.healio.com/orthopedics/arthroscopy/news/online/%7B207d5985-69ec-43db-8fd8-6971b6357b84%7D/speaker-most-patients-with-instability-do-not-have-additional-surgery-after-bankart-repair A 2014 paper presentation at the Arthroscopy Association of North America found that patients who had surgery to stabilize a dislocating shoulder had about a 1 in 4 chance of having another episode of dislocation or subluxation … Read more

Sex and Shoulder Pain: It’s an Issue

The Tough Cases and Lasting Impacts Unfortunately, he still has limitations: mostly weakness and pain with lifting beyond 10 or 20 lbs. He also has difficulty supporting his weight on the involved arm. These impairments are likely permanent. We have talked about this on multiple occasions. Sadly, I cannot make everyone 100% better. These are … Read more

Bone Loss and Shoulder Dislocations: An Insidious Problem

A study from the recent American Arthroscopy Association of North America outlines risk factors for poor outcomes after surgery in patients who have had dislocations. Background: Steve Burkhart popularized the concept of the inverted pear-shaped socket. He found that if more than 1/4 of the bone was missing from the socket after a dislocation and a strictly soft tissue arthroscopic repair was performed to fix it, then these patients would be at high risk for

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