I have been suffering from quite an intense shoulder pain for approximately three weeks. I originally didn’t want to get it seen to because I was hoping it would resolve itself, however it has recently gotten so bad that I have no other choice. I did try a few nonsurgical treatment options, such as resting and heat packs. I then went to a masseuse who did a couple of exercises on it and then referred me to a specialist. That specialist told me I have to have an actual procedure.
Apparently the procedure is called a shoulder arthroscopy, and it’s where the surgeon puts a small camera into my shoulder joint. I’ve watched some videos of it online. The small camera shows the surgeon images on a video monitor in the room and it helps the surgeon guide the instruments. I’m a little bit nervous about getting this procedure done.
I’ve been reading online about what kinds of other treatments I could do instead, however it looks like this is the best way to diagnose the source of my shoulder pain. I also found a website for a local company that has an extremely reputable rotator cuff repair surgeon in Melbourne, and they were a brilliant source of information for me. This sort of procedure is an extension of the arthroscopy, where the joint is looked at to ascertain how much damage there actually is. Then the surgeon could maybe perform something called a subacromial decompression to clear away any inflamed tissue or bone spurs that are irritating my rotator cuff. Then, once my torn tendon is free of any scar tissue, it can be repaired back to the bone. They would do this using instruments called anchors and sutures.
It sounds quite simple when you read about it, but I know these surgeons have spent years in medical school. I really respect them and I am really looking forward to getting my shoulder repaired.