Let us know how you go. Some will have more training, experience or ability in helping patients to overcome the biomechanical factors that can cause shoulder impingement and supraspinatus tears. 4. twice, second time relief only lasted 5 minutes) finally local doc ordered M.R.I. On the other hand, you will also need to ask about the likelihood of decent recovery without surgery. Surgical repairs can be compromised when post-operative instructions are not followed, so if you have surgery make sure you know exactly what you should and should not do! I don't want to experience what you've gone through, but I'm currently deployed and am not getting treated. So while the cost of surgery can be expensive, people who can't do their job one-handed may also need to consider potential loss of income as well or making alternative work arrangements. This can be one of the most frustrating things for people who have whiplash associated disorders. I hope I will not follow suit! Rotator cuff tendon augmentation grafts are a promising area of research. Most of the time, it is accompanied by another rotator cuff muscle tear. Many professions require repetitive or heavy overhead work (roof plasterer etc.). so, my question is if i make physical strengt evercises to improve rotory cuff at this level-now,isn't it bad to heal the particular supraspinat muscle. Dr. Mike great info here thanks. Partial thickness tears of the supraspinatus muscle are an incomplete disruption of muscle fibers; note that these can progress to a complete or full thickness tear of the supraspinatus muscle, and larger tears pose a higher risk of progression to full tears, even if they are asymptomatic. Dr Mike, Please help me understand what options I might have in my case of job relater incident. The main action of the supraspinatus muscle is to abduct the shoulder joint (lift your arm out sideways and upwards). The individual shape of the bone structures (particularly the acromion) and soft tissues around the tendon will contribute to whether the tendon is able to move freely or become impinged between structures with arm elevation. I decided to go to the local army medical hospital. For all you that are going to have this surgery be prepared for the long haul you will feel the feelings of uselessness, frustration, anger, and people looking at you like your full of it hang in there! It seems as though you have now had two MRI reports. Available from. I found it very helpful as I am sure all your other subscribers found it to be too. If youve experienced acute damage or a recent shoulder injury, or are otherwise experiencing pain in your shoulder or rotator cuff area, consult your doctor and an orthopaedic surgeon as soon as possible, particularly if you work in a field, play a sport, or have a hobby that involves lots of overhead lifting and repetitive arm motions. It sounds like you are not following your surgeons instructions! Cai YZ, Zhang C, Lin XJ. Thoughts on surgery? Instead specific movements are required, these shouldn't cause pain while performing the exercise. Nike shoes helped manage my plantar fasciitis. That way you can make an informed decision in consultation with advice from your doctor. These types of injuries seem quite common for people who work in construction and are often associated with doing work above shoulder height. there is a small full thickness insertional tear identified relating to the posterior supraspinatus. Rotator cuff tears in young patients: a different disease than rotator cuff tears in. Had mild discomfort in shoulder for a few weeks in August. So first off, I should say that I have certainly seen situations where a small supraspinatus tear has been surgically repaired, only for a worsening of symptoms to occur after further pathology (such as other rotator cuff tendon tears) either develop or become easier to detect on imaging (e.g. Mild AC arthropathy. I've only got a couple of minutes, so I'll keep this short. If you want any further clarification just post any follow up question. Small to moderate glenohumeral joint effusion. Symptoms. Sometimes in cases like this your surgeon may want to try an injection. I have not lost any ROM I just have severe pain in my right shoulder. ), but not so good with the finer movements (better performed by the muscles in the forearm and hand). Any advice would be greatly appreciated. P.S. It is good that you have discussed the recovery with your surgeon already. It is possible this tear may communicate with the bursal surface anteriorly. I experienced a fall on August 31, 2012. My pain is mostly in the bicep area and I do not have trouble lifting the arm but bringing it back down and also bringing the lower arm down when the upper arm is at 90 degrees. Hi there. Most tears occur in the supraspinatus tendon, but other parts of the rotator cuff may also be involved. Thanks for stopping by and sharing your story. My husband just had and MRI and it showed a Nonretracted small insertion full-thickness tear of the supraspinatus tendon. Unless the shoulder is actually dislocated at the time of the x-ray, or there is a noticeable bone abnormality (chipped or broken bone, bone spur that is visible on x-ray etc. As the damage progresses, the tendon can completely tear, sometimes with lifting a heavy object. I can reach behind my back ok. Good luck! If you do opt for surgery. Results from individual studies, where possible, will be pooled in statistical meta-analysis using JBI SUMARI. If pain is being caused, then there may be a problem with technique or a lower intensity may be required. I also can't give you specific advice about your situation over the internet etc. Her MRI shows a full thickness tear of supraspinatus tendon and a tear of the majority of the infraspinatus tendon (with a few lower infraspinatus fibers still attached). I was very optimistic about the P.T. Couldn't even lay down. However, there are a variety of factors that will need to be considered. However, it sounds as though you must be under the care of a medical team in order to have received MRI results, which is a good thing. Dwyer T, Razmjou H, Holtby R. Full-thickness rotator cuff tears in patients younger than 55 years: clinical outcome of arthroscopic repair in comparison with older patients. This includes small (01 cm) and medium (13 cm) tears. 2. I'm quite apprehensive and nervous about the surgery but more so about the recovery. Lol. Full thickness tears are the complete disruption of the fibers of the supraspinatus muscle, and generally require a more aggressive treatment plan and surgery. Abrisham SM, Kermani-Alghoraishi M, Ghahramani R, Jabbari L, Jomeh H, Zare M. Additive effects of low-level laser therapy with exercise on subacromial syndrome: a randomised, double-blind, controlled trial. Supraspinatus tendon tears are the most common tendon tear in the shoulder region. Full-thickness rotator cuff tear prevalence and correlation with function and co-morbidities in patients sixty-five years and older. This content is accurate and true to the best of the authors knowledge and does not substitute for diagnosis, prognosis, treatment, prescription, and/or dietary advice from a licensed health professional. He prescribed Vicodin and arthrotec for painbut I would like to get pregnant within a year but would like to be fixed first for obvious reasons. It sounds like the damage is fairly minor in my shoulder yet I have a great deal of discomfort and limited ROM 2 1/2 months after my fall. Studies published from 2010 up to present will be included, as the review conducted by Downie, B. et al. A significant amount of these occur in the supraspinatus muscle, although other areas of the rotator cuff may be involved. If you have concerns, you could ask the surgeon when you next see him whether he thinks your symptoms are from the tendon tear and rotator cuff dysfunction or whiplash? Your physical therapist should be able to help you improve the strength and functioning of your rotator cuff muscles. In planning your treatment, your doctor will consider: There is no evidence of better results from surgery performed near the time of injury versus later on. When he says your tendon is failing, I think what he is trying to convey is that once some strands of a rope start to break, then there is more load on the remaining strands which may cause more strands to break (and then more load on remaining individual strands, more strands tear and so on). The effect of neuromuscular electrical stimulation of the infraspinatus on shoulder external rotation force production after rotator cuff repair surgery. Downie BK, Miller BS. The supraspinatus tendon is located on the back of your shoulder and helps your arm to move throughout its full range of motion and helps with power and strength. Degeneration of the infraspinatus tendon with bursa side fraying. Supraspinatus tendon tears are the most common tendon tear in the shoulder region. My arm was nearly frozen for a period of about 10 minutes, but I slowly started regaining some ROM. There is certainly good clinical research evidence indicating that arthroscopic surgery can help the types of injuries you described. 17. It will also get you back to your normal routine quicker. Surgery may also involve orthopedic alteration of biomechanical factors around the shoulder joint in order to prevent further ongoing damage to the supraspinatus tendon. Partial or full thickness tears that are not complete ruptures are generally far more common than complete ruptures (not common, but require surgery with some level of urgency). Thanks for stopping by and sharing. While hauling a box of machine gun ammunition up a ladder (I was holding onto the ladder with one arm and the box of ammo in the other) my right shoulder randomly decided to give up on me. Sought 2 nd opinion 3weeks later due to the server pain. I was an elite athlete most of my life and have accepted that I will no longer be able to return to my sport 100%. Generally, if an injury is going to heal on it's own, it gets better over time, unless it is re-injured. But not result in a normal shoulder. I guess my question is does this always require surgery? The databases to be searched include: CINAHL, Scopus, MEDLINE (PubMed), Embase, Web of Science and PEDro. Then follow up by asking him about any risks associated with the surgery in your particular case (your surgeon should know your particular circumstances in detail and be able to provide you with specific advice about options available to you). That being said, contemporary surgical repairs and surgical re-attachments have relatively high rates of success (albeit after a difficult post-surgical recovery period) when performed in a timely manner. @anonymous: Hi Elania, Thanks for stopping by and sharing. I have a second opinion on Monday. Communication between health professionals (such as PTs and surgeons) may not be as good as it could be. Getting a second opinion when you are not sure about your first is also often a good idea. If you do have surgery, this would mean you couldn't work on usual duties for several months (recovery time-frames are something worth discussing with your doctor).