Q&A Dr Terry Hammond, Orthopaedic Surgeon, answers some of the most commonly asked questions about shoulder injuries and surgical procedures. General Health Q. My shoulder keeps dislocating – what should I do? A. It is very important that shoulder dislocations are treated as soon as possible, as dislocations can lead to long-term problems such as arthritis. Nowadays, most patients can be treated with keyhole surgery. This has excellent results with minimum complications. Q. What is a frozen shoulder? A. Patients with a frozen shoulder note marked pain in the shoulder and upper arm, and loss of movement. Q. What is bursitis? A. There is a small sac at the top of the shoulder that occasionally gets inflamed. This is called bursitis. Q. How do I know if I have bursitis? A. You will have pain in the shoulder, particularly at night and with overhead activities. Q. How can bursitis be treated? A. Injections are very useful but if pain persists longer than about three months surgery may be required. Q. What kind of surgery can be done? A. Keyhole surgery is an excellent treatment and patients can use their arms immediately after surgery. Q. I have arthritis in my shoulder joint. Can it be treated? A. Yes, a shoulder joint replacement is a great option for severe arthritis in the shoulder. It has an excellent long-term result. Q. What tests will I need for my shoulder? A. All patients with significant shoulder problems need an x-ray. An ultrasound is often done but unfortunately is quite inaccurate. The best test is an MRI scan, which gives superb pictures with a very high degree of accuracy. Q. How long does a frozen shoulder last? A. Unfortunately, there’s about six months of pain and stiffness and then another year of stiffness without pain. Q. How can it be treated? A. Unfortunately there is no excellent treatment, but injections can help relieve pain. Q. Does a frozen shoulder get better? A. Amazingly enough, it recovers fully but it can take up to two years. Q. What is calcium in the shoulder? A. Many patients have small deposits of chalk-like calcium in the muscles of the shoulder. In many cases this causes no problem whatsoever but occasionally it results in pain. Q. How can calcium be treated? A. Keyhole surgery is an excellent way of treating calcium in the shoulder if symptoms are severe enough that they interfere with quality of life. Q. What causes a frozen shoulder? A. Nobody knows! Pindara Magazine 22 Autumn - Winter | 2014
Pindara Private Hospital Magazine - Issue Two
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