doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Torn Rotator Cuff

I have had a strained rotator cuff for a few years and it hasn't bothered me unless I'm lifting something I should not have. Recently stumbled down a stair case and now it is a small tear. I know it can't be fixed without surgery and it is too small to do so.

I want keep shooting but how can I effectively do so? I have the Envro shield and it works but the recoil still stiffens up the trapezoids along the spine and into the neck and I get head aches.

My favourite shooting is late season geese using 1550 fps BB steel out of a 26" Citori with mercury recoil reducer. Gun must weight 8 lbs.

My upland is always with BP 3 drams Pyrodex and 1 1/8 oz shot. 2.5 shells roll crimped.

Any suggestions on how to maintain this shoulder for both upland and migratory well into the future?

Hate to tell you, but having had shoulder problems too, avoidance of recoil is the only thing that helps. All the gimmicks are bologna. Go to light recoil which means less shot charge. Tincture of time is the only cure. Don�t rush to surgery unless absolutely necessary. Good luck man.

How much risk is there with rotator cuff surgery, buzz?

SRH

Any surgery is serious business, and a last resort. It�s dangerous to check into any hospital, even Harvard Medical School. It all has risk, Stan....

Congratulations and welcome to the club. I tore my right rotator cuff last year and doc says it won't heal, ever, even with physical therapy. It keeps me awake at night, but I'm learning to live with it during the day. Key is to isolate that joint as much as possible, keep the elbow against my body when I'm lifting anything. Doc says I can do anything I want with the shoulder as long as it does not hurt. If it hurts, stop doing it. I got in a lot of days on doves this past season, starting with an 1100 .410, working up to an SX3 20ga with a couple of featherlight loads, then to my 686 20ga with Walmart promo loads. That's the point at which the shoulder began to talk back to me. I shot a few pheasants with an SX3 20ga and 3" Black Cloud, and that was OK for the number of shots I needed. Tried some 2-3/4" and 3" duck loads in an SX3 12 ga, and it was tolerable. Your Citori might be OK with 1-1/8oz loads instead of 1-1/4oz, but I bought the SX3s just so I'd have a couple of soft shooting guns that could take steel. I'm backing off on both velocity and shot charge, and got the gas guns just to protect the shoulder until I get the surgery.

Re risk of RC surgery, my doc says it's outpatient, arthroscopic, minimal risk. He won't really know about the specific repair or recovery until he gets in there, but warned me that recovery could be 6-8 months with lots of PT. The caution is that I have an 80% tear, and if I tear what's left then repair success can be iffy. Have you had an MRI? How severe is the tear? My doc says that if the tear is complete and not repaired fairly soon after the separation, the tendon retracts into upper arm and he may not be able to pull it back into place and re-attach it. If you have not had an MRI, get one so you know what you are dealing with.

Jeepers

What is this? The vale of rotator cuff tears?


_______________________
Help me with this thing, Willie. Ray Charles
https://youtu.be/x8A9Y1Dq_cQ

Like I said, surgery is a last resort. It is sometimes necessary, but a last resort. A conservative surgeon won�t rush to surgery. Many things come in to play, including debility, success with rehab and imaging, including MRI results. Medicine and surgery are an art form. There are few absolutes. Conservative medicine/surgery is best under most circumstances. Good luck.

I had surgery 1 year ago. Full monty; torn rotator cuff, labrum, posterior & anterior ligaments repaired, bicep tendon re-anchored. I without a doubt had one of the finest sports medicine �shoulder� Docs in the western US do the work. Recovery was as expected, I was back to full duty, no restrictions 6 months later. Physical therapy amounted to about 1.5 hours per day at home, and a visit to the PT every two weeks. I still continue to do the stretches and band work, probably will for the rest of my life, because I like it. My shoulder is better and stronger than it was when I was 18 yrs old, I have more flexibility than I�ve ever had. I should�ve had the surgery 25 years ago. My initial destruction of my shoulder was caused by sports (baseball-pitching, football, and power lifting). Had to have the surgery after my bi-cep tendon let go during a league basketball game, That was it, decided then and there to get everything that was broke fixed.
Most people who have bad experiences with their shoulder repair usually don�t do the PT consistently or don�t do it at all, do something stupid like not wear their sling or try lifting objects before the repairs have healed, or they had a subpar surgeon to begin with.

I've had my share of shoulder problems. Several years ago I finally insisted on an MRI to get to the bottom of the pain. Sure enough, it was torn badly. Knowing that it would only get worse with the possibility of being so bad that I would need a shoulder reversal/replacement, I had it fixed. In retrospect, I wish that I would have done it sooner to ensure a better outcome. I was almost to the point of needing it replaced, and after serveral months of postsurgical therapy I recovered with perhaps 50% of the original strength. So with my physicians suggestion, I aquired a Churchill feather weight for the coming season. Hey, the doctor said so.
We are getting older and need to fix things when they occur while they still can be done.
Karl

Testimonials are just that, �testimonials�. You guys (you and Karl Graebner) should go to your surgeons websites and make sure they get the appropriate kudos. Glad you guys had good results. Like was said earlier, some people clearly need surgery, and maybe that was you. Many others don�t need unnecessary surgery. Nevertheless, good luck to the initial poster, whether that individual needs surgery or not. Only he and his surgeon will ultimately know (based on multiple parameters). Not everyone needs surgery which is the bottom line.