Reversed Shoulder Replacement

brianjwragg

Hi my names Brian I,m 72. 4 years ago I had total hip replacement of my left hip. Although my hip is now painless, unfortunately my Abductors were damaged during surgery which left me having to walk with a stick because of a Trendeleburg Gate, (I lurch to my left side when I walk) which gives me extremely bad back pains. I was very fit and active until the surgery, but struggle to do some things now. I have Arthritis in a few joints, and now find I need a Reversed Shoulder Replacement. I,m really worried if this will also leave me with other problems, At the moment, I can still swim, ride a bike, and take care of my garden. I would appreciate any info. about Reversed Shoulder Replacement from anyone.
Thank You
Brian

[Deleted User]

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Al

stickywicket

Hi Brian and welcome from me too.

I've never heard of a Trendelenberg Gait before so I googled it and realised I may well have one too Nothing to do with my THRs just too many years of RA and OA, I think.

Anyway, I can well understand your fears of surgery if you've had a bad experience of it. Plus, I think we become a little more aware of potential pitfalls once we've had any kind of surgery. Having said that, I've had excellent outcomes from all mine.

Oddly, I'd never heard of your operation until recently and now you're about the fourth or fifth person who's mentioned it in about six months. I do get the impression that the reversed shoulder replacement is actually at least as common, if not more so, than the ordinary one.

You're in luck, in a sense because, if you have a look on the Living With Arthritis forum, 'crinkly' has recently put up a thread documenting hers. It's going very well by all accounts. She's meticulous with the exercises and very sensible with everything else. Also, I found this which might be helpful https://tinyurl.com/y2pkgcpd .

I think they're essentially to decrease pain rather than increase movement so, if you currently, have a lot of movement, you might want to assess the balance. Also, as it's not an operation which has been on the go a long time as hips and knees have, you might want to ask your surgeon how many he's done. A friend was told eight. She was in a position to go privately so she went for a surgeon who had done over a hundred. And is very happy with the result. (Mind you, she's a former physiotherapist )

Good luck with whatever you choose to do

crinkly1

Hello Brian,

I'm 73 and had a total reverse shoulder replacement three weeks ago. The procedure is now commonly used in many countries and 'my team' has specialised in it for more than ten years so I had ample opportunity to ask questions etc and had no concerns. My op was completely via the NHS although the surgeon involved also works in a private hospital as many do.

To date I'm feeling entirely optimistic and am posting progress on the Living with Arthritis forum since several people are looking for information. I hope my experience may be helpful for you too.