Hockey Shoulder Injury

[Mura]

hi everyone. forgive my grammar, im typing one handed.

last night i was playing ice hockey, when i landed hard on my right side, with arm in , not extended out. right away i heard a tear/grind/crack sound and knew it was bad. i went to emergency, and they xrayed said no fracture. said partial ligament tear and ill have to go back to a doctor the next day. he didnt move arm around at all, even kept it tied tight to me during the xray.

oh, and im in japan, so theres the language. what im wondering is what any of u experienced in these types of injuries thinks..? theres a large bump on my shoulder, and anytime it moves its excruciating pain. this sling is hell! any ideas / advice?

[angieliu]

did it say where the tear was? Xrays will not really show anything if there is damage to soft tissue. You need a MRI or ultrasound to determine this.

I would suggest lots of rest, ice and take some anti inflammatories for the pain.

[Mura]

went back today. he said the ligament is eithrt totally or nearly completely torn. specialist tmw. he said surgery is an option but just this sling may heal the same....

[hopeful]

Grade 2 or 3 AC joint separation.. ive got that...

if you can live with a bump then just leave it. it may take 6 months to heal...

http://i19.tinypic.com/6h8i828.jpg

[hopeful]

did it say where the tear was? Xrays will not really show anything if there is damage to soft tissue. You need a MRI or ultrasound to determine this.

I would suggest lots of rest, ice and take some anti inflammatories for the pain.


x-rays will show an AC separation

[angieliu]

Mura, when you see the specialist I have found the best thing to do is have a list of questions ready to ask them about your injury especially with regards to recovery periods for surgery and your best treatment option. It may also be worthwhile to have a quick read online to find out more detail about what you have when it is diagnosed.

[Mura]

IT GOT A biy mixed up in translation.. he didnt say seperation, but thinks its mostly torn , the ligament that is. its a nice bump here too, on the xray my collarbone is quite high, due to the ligament damage. really appreciate u guys' help and advice. im studying online like a maniac tonight, hunched over so theres no weight on my shoulder.

[hopeful]

mura,

you can do as much research as you want but in the end it wont really make much of a difference..

this injury that u have is very common for ice hockey players. all you have to do is ask some of your team mates who has this injury and chances are u will meet quite a few.

in regards to treatment, just rest with a sling, and then start doing light exercises when there is no pain and this is a gradual process. it will take between 3 months to 9 months till you start feeling good in your shoulder but i doubt it will ever feel the same or be as strong as before... and the bump stays..

surgery success rate is very low... and the end results between surgery and non surgery is exactly the same in most cases.

[angieliu]

injuryupdate
Administrator Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: Sydney
Posts: 1,454

Post-operative advice

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Everyone here needs to be on the careful side with respect to giving post-op advice. Surgeons are a bit like football coaches - overpaid, but should have the final say on management & if you don't like their results you can sack them.

Any patient with any queries on post-op advice should automatically go back to the surgeon to ask the question and, really, only accept advice from others involved in the management, eg referring doctor, physio, surgeon's practice nurse etc.

It is OK to ask (1) other patients what they did at certain times in their rehab and (2) other professionals what they would advise for rehab. However, you would be mad to ignore your own surgeon's recommendation for post-operative protocol in favour of a post on an internet forum (including mine!!!)

Therefore if your surgeon says to wear the sling at night, I would do it!
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The staff of injury update are not responsible for views of other users posted in this forum.

[angieliu]

Actually, I disagree with that doing research is not beneficial. My experience with my injury has showed that it is very important to do research and understand what type of injury you have and then make your decisions with the guidance of a medical practitioner. This of course is my own experience and may be different for others.

Mura, I would be guided with what your specialists says in terms of treatment and recovery. rest will be very beneficial and I have found that sitting in stagnant positions like in front of a computer can cause more stiffness so make sure that you are sitting in one position for too long.

[kjwilkin]

Mura,

I totally agree with Angie's advice.

It is important to be educated about your problem so you have a better understanding on what you are dealing with.

I would be guided by your doctor's and physio on the best way to treat your injury. Only they know your full history and know what has happened.

Although I have a different shoulder injury I find sitting at the computer for too long really hurts my shoulder and back. So, I try to limit this when I can.

Good luck with your recovery !

[Mura]

its been good to do research online, at the very least to gain a basic understanding of how things work and what isnt working in your own case.

shoulder specialist today. he says its likely a complete tear of both ligaments, a type 3 seperation. he reviewed the options.. conservative-rest , sling, and ill be back doing some sports reasonably soon, a month or two? or operative-a 6cm cut, re attach the ligaments, then drill a screw to hold things tight. to be removed in 2 months. it sounded like he was thinking that to be the way to go. minimum 3days - 2weeks in hospital.

mri on monday...

[Mura]

hey hopeful, its good to hear from someone else who has gone through this.

seeing the pic u posted looks like mine , but mines a little smaller (everyone spare me the jokes with that prev sentence:p ).

so how did u treat it, and recovery time was 6 mths?

im ALMOST done with the anger and feeling sorry for myself stage, and ready to beat this thing down..

[hopeful]

mura... that isnt my shoulder. when i was doing some info gathering on the web i downloaded a whole heap of photos of the injury.

the injury itself is very common amongst ice hockey, rugby league/union, cycling, snowboarding, martial arts (judo, wrestling, MMA) and alpine skiiers.

i treated it just by leaving it. for me, after 4 months there was a huge improvement. after 6 months there was another big improvement and it just gradually got better. maybe do some light weights like 2 kg dumbells and do some easy exercises within your pain free range of movement.

ask your coach about the injury, he should be very familiar with it.

[Mura]

heres my shoulder.. and xray.
http://i195.photobucket.com/albums/z238/nakamura-07/shldr2.jpg
http://i195.photobucket.com/albums/z238/nakamura-07/xray.jpg

[hopeful]

thanx for the photos... yours doesnt look too bad... to me it doesnt look like a grade 3. more like a grade 2. you know its completely torn when you can actually move the collarbone with your other hand. kinda gross.
it took me 6 months to heal because i had nerve damage. by looking at your surrounding muscles, yours may heal alot sooner. i think you will be fine without surgery. most people dont get surgery.. if you are australian you would be pleased to know that footy players kurt gidley, paul harragon, sterlo, adrian morley etc have the same injury. travis norton knight has the most prominent one. as long as you arent stick thin then it makes for a pretty good battle scar...

[debbie clarke]

From what i researched shoulders are slow healing and patience is running low after 5 months . Definitely agree to limit computer use as the watch posture at all times. Good luck Mura. I found MRI showed up most in comparisom to xray and ultra sound - but every one is a different .
Cheers

[Mura]

great news.. and hopeful, maybe you shouldve diagnosed me earlier. The doc reviewed my latest xrays and mri scan, and thinks its a grade 2 seperation---no surgery ness!

[kjwilkin]

Mura,

That's great news. However, this site is not about diagnosing people's injuries. It's about sharing our ideas and experiences of injuries we've had.

Good luck with your rehab !

[hopeful]

hi mura, now all you have to do is do heaps of shrugs with weights to increase your traps that was it wont look so prominent. i recommend walking around with dumbells on both hands as soon as you are able to lift without any pain.

unfortunately some of my posts here have been deleted by kjwilkin so my other ideas havent been passed on.

[Mura]

thanks for the advice and for sharing your experiences to help me sort out what to do, as it was my first serious injury (lucky i know).

kjwilkin, sharing ideas, experiences, rehab stories (what worked and didnt work) are essential to a forum like this i agree. By posting the good news (that surgery isnt ness.) i was only sharing with the small community here who had invested their time to post on this topic, for my benefit. Its the least a person can do, rather than just post begging for stories/help, only to disappear when that help isnt needed anymore.

[debbie clarke]

Great news Mura - good luck with rehab -