On 7/26 I had an arthroscopic resection of the distal clavicle of my right shoulder. Arthritis was the primary cause, with a loss of cartilage, a lot of bone spurring, and a slight tear. The tear was minimal, and could be cleaned up very easily, letting me get out of the sling and into limited use on Friday. Funny how little things, like putting on a shirt, were suddenly so difficult. But, every day, things are getting easier.
These pictures may gross you out, but given how bad my arthritis was, I’m happy to see these! The clavicle area in the shoulder had 12-13 mm (about 1/2 inch) taken out. The picture below shows you how awful it was – rough, uneven. No wonder I hurt!
To do the surgery, I had three small incisions made in my shoulder, with a camera inserted, an instrument to ablate, and one to cauterize. Other instruments were used to smooth the bone, and all sorts of things. I have a really cool DVD of it all!
This next picture shows how the bone was cut away, to finally create a smooth surface for tendons and nerves, and eventual healing of the periosteum (bone covering). The process was begun here. The silver instrument actually grinds away at the bone, and the auger-quality of it slurps up the bone as it grinds down.
This next picture shows you the bone shaved away, exposing a “new” surface, one much smoother than the old, and which will heal with a smooth covering on it. It is raw, but the healing process will cover it very nicely, like a fracture repairs itself.
Today, I really don’t feel bad at all. There is some tingling in my hand and forearm, and a general ache in the area where they took out the bone. I expect Celebrex is masking some of it, and the cold pack (a Polar Care 300 unit) is helping. I think I was probably overactive yesterday, and I didn’t sleep in my sling – but I am taking it easy today, and tomorrow – and I will definitely sleep in my sling. I was asleep during the entire process, which took a couple of hours. Getting me out of the anaesthesia was a different story altogether….
I feel better than I did 3 days ago, and expect I will continue to improve. A skilled surgeon is certainly an artist, and someone to be as appreciated as talented as your favorite painter, actor, or singer!
I think it was around 7/25/2009 that I had a Mumford decompression of my right shoulder. I went back to work three days later, and in general made a very good recovery. Over the next ten weeks, I attended weekly physical therapy sessions and learned a lot about movement and stretching, all to keep my shoulder in good shape as it healed. The muscles had been pulled apart during surgery for the insertion of the instruments, and that left me with weird feelings. I also had a radial nerve block which created a bit of havoc later on. I also paid attention to my posture as I knit or did other things.
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