Although not as frequently as the knee or hip replacement, shoulder replacement is being increasingly performed due to its success in relieving pain from severe shoulder arthritis, chronic tendon tears or severe fractures.
Surgeons at The Orthopedic Center are experienced in both, anatomic and reverse shoulder replacement surgery. Set up a consultation to find out if you can benefit from this advanced procedure for shoulder pain.
Anatomic Shoulder Replacement
The indications to perform this procedure is generally the failure of conservative management resulting in pain that interferes significantly with your activities of daily living.
Often misunderstood, joint “replacement” is in fact a “re-surfacing” procedure whereby the orthopedic surgeon removes the worn surface of the shoulder bones including the humerus and the scapula (shoulder blade). The implant is secured to the bone by “press-fitting” it into strong bone or using a cement polymer when the bone is weak.
Your surgeon needs to access the joint by making precise incisions and bone cuts while protecting important tendons, ligaments, blood vessels and nerves. Your surgeon will not only remove the old joint surfaces but she or he will also correct any deformity caused by the arthritis.
Typically you will stay in the hospital after surgery for one night, but in special occasions some patients will be allowed to go home on the day of surgery.
Physical therapy following your surgery is an important components of the entire process and it is mandatory in order to guarantee a successful outcome. In general, physical therapists working with you have been selected by your surgeon based on their ability to deliver good consistent therapy outcomes.
Reverse Shoulder Replacement
Shoulder joint function and movement depends on having healthy rotator cuff muscles. The rotator cuff muscles are the deeper layer that it is immediately adjacent to the joint itself. The function of the rotator cuff is to, not only move the joint, but more importantly to maintain the humeral head centered on the shallow socket while it is moving.
If the rotator cuff tendons are healthy your surgeon will choose an anatomic implant that replicates the shape and size of your joint. However, if your rotator cuff tendons are torn or damaged, the surgeon will choose a special design that creates stability by reversing the geometry of the joint: The reverse shoulder arthroplasty.
Since the advent of this revolutionary design in the treatment of arthritis of the shoulder associated with a rotator cuff tendon tear, thousands of patients have been able to regain pain free function. The reverse shoulder design also allows surgeons to treat complex shoulder fractures.
