During my Great Loop adventure, I continue to work with my torn shoulder cuff issue. In Austin Texas, I met with Dr Hurt at Austin Orthopedic Institute.
After he reviewed my MRI and other paperwork, we had a great discussion. First, he put me through some of the standard strength evaluations most doctors have performed during this little issue of mine. He than talked about options for getting better. He did give me the cortisone option and confirmed for the most part cortisone mostly masks an issue, not repairs.
He then discussed his criteria for performing surgery on the injury. He considers 3 main points; severity of injury, age of injury, age and condition of the patient. My injury is bad but not THAT bad, it is at least 6 months old, I am 71 years old. He went on to explain that as we age our bones, joints, muscles, and ligaments age. Bones and ligaments begin to become more fragile. At my age, even though I’m in pretty good shape for a 70-year-old, my ligaments are still aging and don’t have the elasticity of a 20-year-old. There is a 50/50 chance that if he reattached my separated ligaments to the shoulder bone, they may tear.
His recommendation is to not do surgery. To work at strengthening the muscles in my arm. Often the muscles will begin to support the injury allowing me to have full pain free movement. I should speak with my physical therapist for additional exercise suggestions to strengthen my injured arm. I have already made an appointment for January 02, 2024 at 10:30 AM CT.
I had forgotten to include some of my Fern Bluff friends. If you are new, you can review some of my earlier KZread reports on my injured shoulder sub-adventure of my Great Loop adventure.
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Journey Repairing Shoulder Cuff During Great Loop Adventure
• Journey Repairing Shou...
Physical Therapy visit 12-18-23
• Great Loop Torn Should...
Now to get my hearing checked and new glasses.
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