Anyone have total shoulder replacement?
 

Thinking about it but I have concerns.

Infection: for some reason a good percentage of patients come away with an infection according the all knowing Net.

Rehab: I haven't been able to raise my arms as in a victory salute for years. Haven't been able to throw a ball for 20 years. What are they gonna expect? That I'll be shooting 3 pointers in a year? My muscles and ligaments are not gonna want to stretch to a point that they've not seen in a quarter of a century. At least that's what I think.

Limits on lifting: sort of moot point but I can lift 50 lbs. with both arms if I have to. Doc says the lifetime limit on the new shoulder is 20. Hell, a small dog weighs 20.

Hammering and jarring: I have no idea about what I will be able to tolerate but as many of you know, I've got a hammer of some sort out of the tool box nearly every day. (I pay dearly for that.) Will that compromise the shoulder after due rehab?

I probably will need to do this and it might as well be sooner rather than later as I'm 72.

My sister, 67 yo, had it done this past winter.
It went amazingly well. She had very little pain.
Within a month, she was attending her exercise class. I was really surprised how easy it went.
She has almost complete movement of the arm.
No infection.

Subscribed. I have broad shoulders but they are poorly secured to the superstructure. Bad genetics. Compile in 50 years of injuries and I am working around a non functioning left shoulder that is 80% frozen and filled with arthritis. When driving I can't lift my left hand to the top of the steering wheel without help from my right. I have had 2 consults over the last 10 years - both saying the only option is replacement. I have had several cortisone shots in that 10 year span but they only relieve pain for a couple weeks so I stopped getting them.

This year I spent $3.5K in deductible costs for an out patient endoscopy and am thinking I should get my shoulder replaced before my deductible resets. I would love to be able to go through life without chronic shoulder pain and be more physically active.

I will give you another view.

My shoulders are shot, 12 yrs carpenter in the days when we used framing hammers and finish hammers. 36 yrs as a Chiropractor, not much different than swinging a hammer except sideway motion with rotational movement which tears up rotator cup muscles faster. Add to the fact that over 40 yrs ago , a climbing fall tore my right shoulder out of its socket.

Keep the deltoid muscle complex strong has been my motto for along time. Anyway, gave up overhead stuff along time ago but in the last 2-3 yrs, my right shoulder, the worst one was in level 7 pain 24/7. Pain beats you down not movement.

This January, I said enough is enough, I got a stem cell injection in my right shoulder and 4 months later, I am not sorry, I am amazed. My constant pain is gone, I can now work over my head and can now sleep on that shoulder. Do I have pain still? yes, at a 1-2 level. Am I happy with the results, yes, just for the fact that I still have my parts that I was born with still around, no metal.

Would I do it again, in a heartbeat. Next week am leaving for a 3 week vacation sailing into BC. When I return, my knees will get the stem cell injections.

I hope this helps you in your future plans and if you have any questions, you know how to get in contact with me.

@gatotom PM sent.

Milt good luck on whatever you decide to do . My SIL ( retired ) had one of her shoulders done a year ago and she came through with no issues .

Sounds like me. At first it was my left shoulder because of how I drove with my left hand draped over the wheel. 25K miles/year. I'd get nasty spasms and have to dangle my arm down the side of the seat. Took a long time to learn not to drive that way instinctively. I still get those spasms here at the keyboard if I stay too long.

However, my right shoulder is trashed. It rattles around at the slightest movement. Even shaving is a chore. Every tried shaving left handed? I'm becoming ambidextrous.

I can't get dressed easily by myself because of this. Looking into the stem cell thing.

I had a shoulder replacement 2 years ago, I was 54 years old. My shoulder was shot from arthritis. I don't have the constant pain like before but some pain from certain movements or "over use". I was told by the Drs that the longer one waits the harder the recovery is due to muscle loss. Lot of things I could not do before the replacement and stuff I still can't do but I can sleep on my left side now, I could not do that for at least 8 years. Over head work hurts and is limited, can't throw a ball overhand, lifting a gallon of milk with elbow locked to put on top shelf of the frig can hurt. I can also struggle tightening or loosening bolts as I just lost so much strenght from babying my shoulder, I've had to use some pretty long breaker bars and cheater bars. I do limited hammering, no wood chopping as they say the constant "hammering" of the joint is bad. My Dr said to lift no more than 10 lbs with my left arm, which is hard to follow since I'm left handed. The Dr also said I'd be back in about 10 years to get it fixed again as the plastic socket would wear out. I'm trying to baby my shoulder but old habits are hard to break. My physical therapy was disappointing, I expected it to be harder. Over all I think the replacement was worth it.

I had bone taken out of the AC joint (where your collar bone meets the bone nearest the deltoid) and when they were in there they found a slap tear to the labrum. I can't help you on your particular issue.

However, I can tell you this was the worst surgery/repair I've ever had, which I believe is due to so many muscles holding the shoulder together and how it moves in so many planes. I was out of work for 30 days (dr ordered) and rehab was a total killer. Found a 80+ degree pool at our YMCA and that helped with doing the PT movement in a supported, warm environment.

The pain was off the charts initially and I found that I had to follow the pain med protocol. If they say take the opiod every XX hours, do it. If you get behind it will kill you and you can't control the pain and won't get it under control for hours. Brought to tears many, many times.

Probably the worst pain was laying / siting upright in bed and the shoulder would relax. When I tried to move the pain was beyond a 10 but I had to get up so I just had to push through the pain.

It took me a few years to get back to normal. Still don't throw a ball with any real strength (and usually just avoid it) and my arm movement is limited. In fact, the first time I threw a football about 2 years after surgery I thought they were going to have to re-do the repairs. A friend (ortho DR) told me that my movement limits were normal since when the repairs are done they usually tighten things up for preventative measure.

Best of luck !

Infection is a risk with all surgeries. The surgeon should explain those risks and give a statistic for the odds.

I had reverse shoulder reconstruction surgery on both shoulders.
I am right handed and had the left shoulder done Oct. 2015.
I had the right shoulder done in May 2015.
I have full function of both shoulder.
The one thing I would do differently is have second surgery done in the fall.
With the hot weather and the bandages you will be miserable.
Get a good electric reclining chair. I couldn't sleep in a bed for awhile.
Get a second opinion from another Doctor that is not tied into your current network.
I paid out of pocket to see him. It saved my ass.
You have to have the surgery done right the first time.
Get into Physical Therapy with a good therapist as soon as possible.
Pick a Doctor you trust.
I do things differently now. I try to work smart.
I would do the surgery again in a heartbeat .
I hurt if I over do it. But not like I did before.
I noticed you live in Long Beach.
I live in So. Cal.
Feel free to contact me.

Bernie in So. Cal.

Surgery was done Friday, 1/4. Doc said it went well but it was one of the more messed up shoulders he’s done and that’s more than a few. Actually it took 2 surgeons.

They kept me 2 days as the pain was extreme. Doing ok now.

Please keep the updates coming!

Glad to hear you're doing better. I hope healing continues and pain subsides with increased motion.

If the Doc offers you Ultram / Tramadol take a hard pass!!!

Best wishes

Good luck, Milt!

Best of luck Zeke.......Here's to many more pain free years....

Saw a comedian long time ago talking about how sometimes he'd sleep wrong and his arm would go to sleep.
He talked about how cool it would be if he could detach his arms and hang them up before going to bed.
he'd just reach over and unhook one arm and hang it up, then ....... oh wait.

I have more PK’s than I thought they’d give me and tramadol works while not so much nausea. Thanks to all but the ‘comedian’. :D

Good news there...but please do keep us updated as the healing progresses..