6 Month Post-Op Update
 

Hello Everyone. I hope and pray all is well with you all.

It's been a while since I've written anything, but I've been doing my PT. Thought I would give you guys a quick update, and leave some questions hoping someone can answer them.

First, many of you know I had a rib resection and scalenectomy on my left arm in Dec of last year. Had two previous surgeries on right arm, which was not successful. I've been dealing with TOS for 21 yrs.

Okay, as stated above I've been doing PT. Well PT was NOT successful. I can't only lift my left arm only halfway. The arm will not lift up or go over my head. My PT thinks the arm is in a frozen state. They call it, "Frozen Shoulder". Also, when the PT was doing all the procedures on my left arm, he notice while performing the strength test for both arms, my right arm strength is down to 5. Basically this means my strength is almost gone in the right arm. I still have swelling in both arms and chest areas. Especially around the incisions. The pain decreased just a little, but still painful. I still can't sleep. Only 3 hours of sleep. The PT notice I was not getting better and we decided to stop all treatments. By the way, he told me about this TEN machine, so I purchase one. Your insurance should cover this. I also was informed by this sales guy at my doctor's office about a machine called, Flexitouch. It suppose to help with the swelling, but it did not help, so I return it. The ten machine gives me a little relief. It's a stimulation machine.

I'm seeing an Orthopedic doctor next week regarding this shoulder issue, and I will see my doctor in about three weeks. My doctor and I have a lot to discuss. :0)

Can someone answer this question?

1) Have any of you experience a frozen shoulder after your surgery? If so, what did u do to get your arm to move again.


Sorry for the long post, and I will keep you all updated. My doctor did inform it could take a 1 1/2 before I get better. So I'm being patient with the process. You all be bless, and we need to continue to fight this TOS.

Thanks

I'm sorry you didn't have much luck with PT. I had the same experience of having PT hurt rather than help. I hope the next 12 months go better for you.

Take care,
Kelly

I haven't had rib resection or frozen shoulder. I have a TENS and I love it though. Glad it is providing you some relief.

I had a frozen shoulder going into my surgery. However the frozen shoulder was on the left side and the surgery on the right. The PT "unthawed" it by moving it to it's limits and it went away over two to three months. It was painful but similar to PT after a shoulder surgery. It seems it would be tricky on your surgery side but that is the only way to improve it.

Thanks Roman for the info. The PT I was seeing was stretching the arm as far it could go, but no success. Going to see my surgeon in two weeks, I'm hoping he has another plan. Will keep you all updated.

Dr. Gelabert (UCLA Vascular Surgeon) has brought this up before as a concern after rib resection or scalenectomy if you aren't moving your shoulder joint enough post-op. My fiancé had bicep reattachment and during recovery suffered Frozen Shoulder - it was awful! Through PT and chiropractics (we have a no-cracking chiro here) he was able to get close to his previous ROM. I wish you lots of luck, it is not an easy recovery but it is possible.

Thanks for the info. I've been reading a lot about frozen shoulders, and it's not an easy process. I'm not in a hurry, so if it's a year or so, I'm willing to wait to get better. :0)

GOD BLESS!!!

I ended up with both a winged scapula and a frozen shoulder as a result of my rib resection. I'm nearly 5 months out. I did PT for about 2 months, and got some improvement, but I still have a long way to go. I had to put PT on hold because it was just too painful and I could no longer tolerate pain meds. I'm hopeful that it will eventually get better.

Thanks for the info, and I hope things will improve for u. I've read that it takes almost a year and half to recovery from a frozen shoulder. I know how you are feeling, but hang in there. My surgeon informed me it's going to take almost a year and half to see improvement. So take it one day at a time, and don't over do it. Thanks for the reply.

Yes, that's all we can do, wait it out. I am used to a "new normal" at this point. I know my limits, even my 6yo knows not to ask me to push him on the swing.LOL

I agree with sec161, Post-op movement of the shoulder joint and range of motion and working on getting your musculature to work correctly is so important otherwise it can get stiff and painful later and give you a lot of symptoms again. Get any help you can from a TOS savvy PT and keep working on it. It took me 3 years after surgery to finally get out of it. Don't give up and keep working on it. Do your research and find good people to help you. Keep positive!

Sometimes you need to have someone mobilize the scar tissue around the surgery sites and that helps to get the body ready to be able to exercise again. Even after surgery, exercise is the key and after the basic ones, the progression exercises for the shoulder are absolutely necessary for maintenance almost every day.

Usually if you don't mind sharing what location you are from in the country, People on the forum can help you better with the resources you can get help from.
Or try and find a CFMT (certified functional manual therapist) trained from the Institute of Physical Art. They are best at working on the stiff frozen muscles and tissues including scar tissues. Regular PT couldn't help me and I couldn't stretch at all to do the exercises but the CFMT's were able to to help me get out of my pain and stiffness issues! I can't recommend them enough! It's worth a try!

Thanks stos for the reply. I'm not down regarding my situation. I've been dealing with TOS for 20yrs, but my faith in GOD keeps me going every day. It hasn't been easy, but I take it one day at a time. I still try and live a happy normal life, despite all of this TOS stuff. :0)

I will look into the CFMT's. I live in the Dallas, TX area. Thanks again, and you have a bless day.