dogman24

Had total right shoulder replacement surgery October 17, 2018 at age 71 1/2. Aggressive workout and rehab regime has me at about 80% today. No limitations as far as photography is concerned. Work first on range of motion; later, build up strength. I'm told that gains will continue up to a year from the surgery. Good luck.

dogman24

Keep at it. You are just at the beginning of the journey. I'm now 8 months out and about 80-90%. You will get there.

dogman24

Ditto on the nerve block. I was in no pain at all after surgery...but I couldn't even feel my fingers for three days. The key is dedication to rehab for recovery, and a good surgeon.

awis01

My wife had shoulder surgery. Long recovery. She is pretty close to full strength but as said earlier, she'll never be at 100%. She has had no trouble hand holding her camera with an 80-400 on it. Good luck with your recovery.

PhilS

I had my right shoulder replaced in October, 2017. It was a reverse replacement, which puts the ball of the joint on your body and the socket on your arm. Before surgery, I could barely raise my arm above shoulder level with any kind of weight - especially when it was extended.

I had an excellent surgeon. Pain was minimal' I was off narcotic pain relief after 2 days, using just Tylenol. Physical therapy was key. Three times/week for probably 2 months worked wonders. I had almost no pain during PT - some discomfort, but nothing unbearable. After about 4 months, I was pretty much back to normal. I can heft all of my gear, go hiking (including some bouldering), carry/raise/put away my 28' extension ladder, mow the grass, shovel New England snow off my long driveway - and take photos. I have full range of motion, and great joint strength. For the most part, I don't even think about it. A lot depends on your frame of mind and your commitment to PT.

For what it's worth, my observations of other people in PT and at work, rotator cuff repairs, "normal" shoulder replacement, and similar procedures are that those people have a lot more difficulty with pain and recovery.

The whole process did slow me down a bit, but now I'm far ahead of where I was before the surgery. Good luck!

dhroberts Loc: Boston, MA, USA

My right shoulder was replaced two years ago, and with the appropriate PT I recovered about 95% of its function while loosing 100% of the pain. All I lost was a little flexibility. I have no problem hand holding my Nikon 300/2.8G (although of course the weight is mostly on the left arm).

Find a good surgeon and do the PT, and you should be pleased the results. I chose not to take any chances with an inexperienced surgeon, and went with the head of the shoulder service at Massachusetts General (rated the #1 hospital in the US). If you're in southern NJ you're not too far from Hopkins (in Baltimore), another great hospital.

Dickbas Loc: Southern New Jersey

Thank you so much!

d2b2 Loc: Catonsville, Maryland, USA

Hopkins is not the best for Orthopaedics. In Baltimore, St. Joseph or Union Memorial are better.

MechEng Loc: The Mitten

This topic darn sure got my attention. Had knees replaced 2 months apart a few years ago and now my shoulders, especially my left one, is so jacked up I can't do much above horizontal.....hell, my neck and back hurts most days from nerve impingement and radiating pain. Only x-rays so far and the doc that read the images said rotator cuff damage but nothing completely torn....not sure how he can see much without MRI since this is soft tissue.....probably more along the lines of being controlled by the insurance company. They said the same about my knees but when they went in an imaged....bone on bone and totally fubarred. Unfortunately, I am in at the front end of a complete house renovation and have to get through that before contemplating surgery. Gotta try to get a 22' 500# steel I-beam into the house and position.....not looking forward to that. The one thing I really enjoy doing more than anything is getting out there in nature and photographing whatever. I can still do my 150-600mm telephoto but without a tripod, I can only go for short bursts of a minute or two at a time and relaxing between those bursts. This sucks and I am tired of rebuilds but it still beats the alternative.

sv3noKin51E

Dickbas, This is a serious and tough question, you're justifiably concerned. I had a complete right reverse shoulder replacement done several years ago, but only after several failed repairs left me in considerable pain. At the time, the French had been doing complete shoulder replacements for over twenty years with good results in all age groups, but only a few of the major surgical colleges in the US were sending guys over to learn how to do it, then develop their own techniques. If you end up going through with a replacement, no matter where you have to travel, go to the absolute best surgeon who has done more of these than anyone else. I wouldn't wouldn't wish the procedure on any photographer who enjoys normal use of their hand and arm.

This is an optional only procedure, it will never be considered 'normal' thing to do, such as knee replacements are now assumed. There aren't enough specialized guys who have taken the required extensive training in order to be board certified in this procedure to assure excellent outcomes. Typically, surgeons won't give anyone a percentage or a post-op recovery range of movement guaranty, and after all, it doesn't hurt the surgeon. Typically a patient might get 75 to 80 percent of the movement/range they had prior to having the procedure, if they're fortunate and there are no complications. The shoulder replacement post op is nothing like having the former weight-bearing capacity and ease of movement a natural shoulder provides. There are very serious complications and risks after the joint is severed, prior to rebuilding it into a 'ball-joint' shoulder. The top of the humorous is cut off and an 'appliance' is driven into the bone, then a 1/2 cup orb is attached with screws to the glenoid, the interior of the shoulder, before everything else is put back together. Two months afterward, when I knew I wasn't recovering, and I felt I wasn't receiving acceptable answers, I went into the hospital's medical records. I found the anesthesiologist was incompetent, he'd injected a block into a nerve, not muscle issue; the surgeon missed reattaching the bicep tendon and sliced into another nerve. Lawsuits are not very useful and there are no redos of this once you go into it.

The shoulder is the most complicated joint there is; anyone casually thinking of allowing a general bone and joint surgeon to completely replace a shoulder joint, should request at least two opinions from specialists, then view a video of the complete procedure. Afterward, insist on speaking to patients who have had the procedure, both successfully and not, without a surgeon or nurse in the room.

I'm a southpaw now, with very little feeling in the right arm/hand and roughly 30 percent of the movement in the shoulder joint. I can't lift over five pounds, arthritis is a total bear, and a simple bump much less a fall feels similar to being hit with a sledgehammer. I still enjoy clicking a shutter and the left hand has been able to take up most of the chores. For heavy telephoto lenses or for extended outings I always use a gimbal as well as tripod arm. Good luck to you.

DEW54 Loc: Charlotte, NC

Here's a cell phone picture of the x-ray of my new left shoulder. Titanium ball and I believe the small piece on the socket side is a wear piece that is chrome carbide coated. Should be good to go in several more months.

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