Worse than frozen shoulders? A 60-year-old woman's arms were weak and drooping. She went to the doctor and was shocked to find that she had a ruptured shoulder rotator tendon.
Worse than frozen shoulders? The 60-year-old woman’s arm weakness turned out to be a “ruptured shoulder rotator tendon”
If you encounter problems such as long-term weakness in raising your hand and limited range of arm movement, beware that it may be a sign of “shoulder rotator tendon rupture”! Dr. Lin Shenghui, the attending physician of the Department of Orthopedics of Chi Mei Hospital, pointed out that he had previously treated a 68-year-old female patient who had limited mobility in her right shoulder. She visited multiple clinics for examination and treatment, and even received injections of hyaluronic acid and concentrated plasma, but she was still unable to live and work normally.
Dr. Lin Shenghui said that the patient’s main complaint was that he was “weak and drooping” after raising his hand for too long, and the range of motion of the joints of his right hand was only 1/3 of the original, which brought a lot of inconvenience to his life (such as wearing underwear or going to the toilet, etc.). The pain worsens and may even wake you up at night, leading to persistent sleep deprivation. After being referred to the hospital by the clinic, a physical examination determined “multiple rotator muscle ruptures” and “joint adhesion.” A magnetic resonance imaging examination was arranged to confirm the diagnosis of shoulder rotator (supraspinalis) tendon rupture and retraction to grade II (Patte II).
After discussing with the patient, Dr. Lin Shenghui decided to augment the treatment with “acellular dermal minimally invasive surgery”. The patient was discharged from the hospital the next day after the operation. Although there was still some pain from the new surgical wound, he managed to successfully overcome the early post-operative pain with medication and shoulder posture adjustment. After that, the doctor continued to guide rehabilitation exercises, 5 Months later, the patient was able to lift his hands 170 degrees, and his endurance also improved greatly.
Is it possible for “muscle rupture” due to throwing away garbage? Beware of the last straw as the disease progresses repeatedly
Dr. Lin Shenghui explained that rupture of the rotator muscles of the shoulder joint is a common degenerative problem in clinical practice. Patients accumulate injuries without knowing it, possibly due to one-time strenuous exercise, such as throwing a bag of garbage, cleaning a high window, or forcefully tearing off a window. The proliferating vines caused rupture of the rotator muscles of the shoulder joint, which was the straw that broke the camel’s back. The subsequent disability not only reduces the ability to work and live, but also affects the quality of life due to pain, causing physical and mental impact. The most serious one is “prolonged illness without medical treatment” that causes joint damage. At this time, even if the artificial joint is replaced, it cannot restore full function.
Dr. Lin Shenghui said that rupture of the rotator muscles of the shoulder joint is actually the final result of repeated injury to the tendon due to living habits or work, which in turn produces irreversible changes. Different from degenerative arthritis, the healing ability of tendons is better than that of cartilage, but this also leads to the prolongation of the course of the disease. Often, after the tendon tear is partially healed, the patient thinks that there is no problem and can safely engage in related work, but in the end the critical injury occurs. It often comes by surprise.
Dr. Lin Shenghui explained that delaying medical treatment may prevent the rotator muscle repair effect from reaching the ideal state, and this phenomenon does not only exist in Taiwan. Sports medicine experts from all over the world are working hard to find the best solution to deal with sports injuries combined with aging phenomena. Overuse after rotator muscle rupture is like an hourglass in the life of the shoulder joint. Multiple medical failures indirectly trigger the end of the joint’s life.
What is the treatment for shoulder rotator tendon rupture? Medical Exposes Technical Advantages of “Double Row Suture Bridging”
Dr. Lin Shenghui said that the most popular minimally invasive rotator surgery is the “double row suture bridged technique”. Its principle is to suture the ruptured and atrophied tendon to the humerus, and connect the tendon and bone. The distance is shortened and locked with 4 anchors to accelerate tendon healing and reduce the risk of tendon rupture again.
The “acellular dermal transosseous reinforcement” treatment in the double-row suture bridging technique is performed using arthroscopy, which can be divided into two parts: transosseous fixation and acellular dermal reinforcement. Transosseous fixation can reduce anchor loosening after osteoporosis; while acellular dermal reinforcement can not only enhance the repair function, but also reduce postoperative pain.
The statistics of shoulder joint rotator muscle rupture in the United States range from 5% to 40%, while geriatric statistics in Taiwan show that the incidence rate is 44% for people over 65 years old. Dr. Lin Shenghui said that the average age of clinical cases is 60 years old, and Women make up the majority. The above two treatment methods have been published in the foreign sports medicine journal “Arthroscopy Technique”. More than 400 cases have been completed since their implementation in 2014. Although they are self-funded projects, they are still one of the options to improve the quality of surgical results.
Extended reading: Will wallets stuffed into pockets hurt the pelvis and waist? Medical warning: Beware of “sciatica” if you apply pressure to 2 parts
