I know there have been lots of threads about shoulders, but not this problem specifically. I have a large bone spur in my shoulder, but there is no rotator cuff tear. The doctor recommends removal and says the surgery is about 30 minutes long and I could be back in the water in 3 weeks, since it "just" a matter of shaving off the spur arthroscopically.
Have any of you had this procedure done and what was the recuperation like? I am a 50 year old woman if that matters in the recup time.
If you have the bone spur removed you will need to figure out why it grew there in the first place, and change that activity so it doesn't just grow back - maybe get a really good stroke analysis or figure out what other movement you are doing to cause the stress on that part of your skeleton.
He probably recommended removing the bone spur because of the liklihood it will cause real problems in the (near) future. A bone spur on the end of the clavicle can eventually cause pain from scraping tendons in the rotator cuff and this can result in torn tendons and a longer and more difficult recovery from surgery.
By all means, if you're not confident in your doctor's diagnosis and solution, get a second opinion. Was your doctor an orthopedist, sports medicine doctor, PT? The expertise and perspective of the doctor should also be considered. However, bone spurs have caused lots of shoulder problems in swimmers and the diagnosis seems quite reasonable.
Nancy
The doctor is an orthopod and I have no reason to doubt his diagnosis (I saw the spur on the x-ray), but I wanted to hear from swimmers who might have had the same surgery and what they went through in the recuperation period. I have talked with serveral perople who have had a rotator cuff tear repaired and I know that rehab is more extensive. I also know that swimmers are a little different from the general population (in better shape and more driven) and I wanted a swimmer's perspective on the whole procedure. Since there haven't been any responses from people who have had the surgery, I guess most swimmers end up with the tear from the spur before they get it fixed.
Thanks to those of you who did respond.
I have had bone spurs removed from both shoulders. Rt shoulder first and then the left within 3 weeks. I also had some other repairs done to the shoulders while they were there but nothing major. Surgery was my only option if I wanted to swim again. Turned out OK and recovery was very easy. Good Luck.
I have also had 2 shoulder scope(one on each side) My one shoulder I let get very painful esp. when I swam, I had a bone spur removed from my scapula,( only with other swim injuries). I am so happy I had it done I can swim and swim WITHOUT any pain.Th rehab takes longer than you think, but listen to your ortho MD(make sure it is done under a scope)PT take it easy. Goodluck Sandy
