Is It Time to Consider Shoulder Surgery?

All of us experience a little pain from time to time. It's not unusual and can usually be treated with over the counter pain remedies. But if said pain and discomfort lingers; becomes too much to cope with; and interferes with your day-to-day life, it's time to consider your options.

Many shoulder pains are the result of a breakdown of soft tissues in the joint, which can often happen to people who have jobs that involve lots of manual labour and people who play certain sports. Rotator cuff tears, tendonitis and arthritis are all typical causes of shoulder pain.

Surgery becomes an option when the pain and discomfort you experience becomes too much to bear, and when it comes to shoulder pain you (usually) have several surgical options:

• Arthroscopic surgery - Where a tiny camera (arthroscope) is inserted through a small incision in your skin and used to examine or repair the shoulder joint tissues.


• Shoulder stabilisation surgery - Carried out to improve the stability and function of the shoulder joint and prevent recurring dislocations.


• Total shoulder replacement - Surgeons replace the ends of the damaged upper arm bone (humerus) and usually the shoulder bone (scapula) or cap them with artificial surfaces lined with plastic or metal and plastic.


• Reverse total shoulder replacement - In standard total shoulder replacement surgery, a metal ball is used to replace the head of the humerus. The socket of the shoulder is replaced with a high-strength plastic implant.
  With reverse total shoulder replacement surgery, the positions of the new ball and socket are 'reversed' and on the opposite sides of a normal shoulder.

Advances in replacement parts mean that most will last a lifetime, but on average artificial joints have a lifespan of 10 to 20 years.