Dislocated Shoulder

Dislocated Shoulder; GA 2.19
Topic Started: Aug 9 2008, 11:51 AM (83 Views)
Carter	Aug 9 2008, 11:51 AM Post #1
O'Malley Forever Posts: 5,361 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: August 2, 2008 Favorite Character George O'Malley Favorite Couple Callie & Arizona	Poor George dislocates his shoulder after tripping and falling down the stairs and announcing to basically the entire hospital that he and Meredith had sex. (2.19, What Have I Done to Deserve This?) In this injury, a fall or blow causes the top of your arm bone to pop out of the shoulder socket. Unlike a lot of joints in your body -- your elbow, for instance-- the shoulder is incredibly mobile. You can twist and move your upper arm in almost any direction. But there’s a price for this ease of movement. The shoulder joint is inherently unstable, prone to slipping out of place. In severe cases of dislocated shoulder, the tissue and nerves around the shoulder joint get damaged. If you keep dislocating your shoulder, you could wind up with chronic instability and weakness. Symptoms of a dislocated shoulder are: Pain in the shoulder and upper arm that hurts more when you move the area. Deformation of the shoulder -- a bump in the front or back of your shoulder, depending on how the bone has been dislocated To diagnose a separated shoulder or dislocated shoulder, your doctor will give you a thorough exam. You may need X-rays to rule out broken bones and other conditions. Dislocated shoulders need to be treated right away. Your doctor will need to move the arm bone back into the shoulder socket. Since the joint will get more swollen and more painful by the minute, the sooner the better. Once the arm bone is back in the socket, some of the pain will go away. After the shoulder bone is repositioned, you can use conservative treatment to reduce pain and swelling. The same treatment would also be used for a separated shoulder. To treat the injury, you should: Ice your shoulder to reduce pain and swelling. Do it for 20-30 minutes every 3-4 hours, for 2-3 days or longer. Use a sling or shoulder immobilizer to prevent further injury. Take anti-inflammatory painkillers. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, like Advil, Aleve, or Motrin, will help with pain and swelling. However, these drugs may have side effects, like an increased risk of bleeding and ulcers. They should be used only occasionally, unless your doctor specifically says otherwise. Practice stretching and strengthening exercises if your doctor recommends them. Most of the time, these treatments will do the trick. But in rare cases, you may need surgery. For a severely dislocated shoulder, surgery is sometimes needed to correctly position the bones. If you keep dislocating your shoulder, surgery to tighten the tendons surrounding the joint may help. When Will I Feel Better? How quickly you recover depends on how serious your shoulder injury is. Separated shoulders may resolve after six weeks. Dislocated shoulders may take longer -- more like three to 12 weeks. But these are just rough estimates. Everyone heals at a different rate. Some symptoms, like stiffness, may linger for a time. A separated shoulder can sometimes leave a permanent, but painless, bump on your shoulder. Once the acute symptoms are gone, your doctor will probably want you to start rehabilitation. This will make your shoulder muscles stronger and more limber. It will both help you recover and reduce the chances of future shoulder injuries. You might start with gentle stretching exercises that become more intense as you get better. But don’t start exercising without talking to your doctor first. Whatever you do, don’t rush things. Ease back into your sport. If you play baseball, start by tossing the ball and work up to throwing at full speed. People who play contact sports need to be especially careful that they are fully healed before playing again. Don’t try to return to your previous level of physical activity until: You can move your injured shoulder as freely as your uninjured shoulder. Your injured shoulder feels as strong as your uninjured shoulder. If you start using your shoulder before it’s healed, you could cause permanent damage. Getting back in the game early is not worth the risk of a lifelong disability. How Can I Prevent Dislocated Shoulder? Getting a dislocated shoulder is painful and debilitating. So do what you can to reduce your chances of getting either of these injuries. Here are some tips: If you feel any shoulder pain during physical activity, stop. Exercise and stretch your shoulder muscles regularly. Ice your shoulder after physical activity if you have had a shoulder separation before. Use protective padding to protect you from falls if you are at risk of a shoulder dislocation. Credit: Shannon (ithinkmaybeobsessed?)



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