Please help me with advice on past dislocation and persistant shoulder weekness.

Hi there, about three years ago i dislocated my shoulder playing rugby. since then i have tryed every thing to strengthen it but it just keeps feeling like its going to dislocate again. it jars massivly and i have to throw my whole body forwards to stop it coming out the joint. sometimes it dosnt even take that much to do this as only a few days ago it did it whils hanging my coat up.the pain dissapers allmost straight away or a couple of hours at the most but it allways feels week when my arm is away from my body and i strugle to play any sports what so ever. i have an appointment with the specialst but im afraid he is going to try surgery. is there any advice anybody can give me on how i can strengthen my shoulder without surgery? i thank everybody who can help in advance.

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Hi Daniel, if you are having ongoing feelings of instability and pain and you experienced a first time dislocation 4 years ago when you were 21 or 22 years of age then it is highly likely that you may have suffered a structural lesion i.e. a labral tear, where the soft tissue is torn of the bony socket. These are prevalent among Rugby players especially as a result of a tackle.

IMO no amount of physiotherapy or strengthening exercise is going to help stabilise a young structurally deficient shoulder. In a young patient like yourself surgery if appropriate is indicated and quite successful. Obviously your shoulder will need further investigation (MR Arthrogram) and a specialist examination.

I can empathise with you about not wanting surgery but it may be the only course of action. Once a shoulder has been affected by trauma then a compensatory muscle pattern develops which only makes the situation worse and you need specialist physiotherapy input to correct it to enhance your shoulders stability. This may have impacted on your previous efforts to strengthen your shoulder?In any case you will need this kind of therapy even after surgical intervention if you decide on that course of action.

I hope this helps with your decision making Daniel?

Cheers

Luke

Hi Daniel,
I am assuming that you suffered an anterior dislocation...when this happens, the ligaments that hold your arm in place are ruptured and the arm is more likely to suffer a recurrent dislocation. I would suggest seeing a physiotherapist who can advise you on strengthening your rotator cuff muscles. These should offer you more stability and reduce the chance of your arm dislocating again.

www.massagemuswellhill.co.uk

Hi daniel,

I would strongly recommend seeing a physiotherapist for appropriate treatment following your dislocated shoulder. Exercises to improve shoulder blade stability, posture and rotator cuff strength are particularly important to improve function and reduce the likelihood of future shoulder dislocation. Rotator cuff strengthening exercises tend to be the focus of rehabilitation. These are important whether or not you choose to go down the surgical pathway. You may be interested in checking out the above links for more detailed information.

Hope that helps and good luck with rehab,

PhysioAdvisor
www.PhysioAdvisor.com