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 APRIL 30, 2009 Tennis Players Can Return to the Court After Shoulder Surgery Thanks to advances in medical techniques and technologies, tennis players with shoulder trouble have more surgical options than ever before. In overhead sports like tennis, small injuries to the shoulder can occur during every match, and their effects can build up over years. These overuse injuries can eventually wear on the ball and socket of the shoulder joint, causing osteoarthritis to develop. A traumatic injury, such as a shoulder dislocation, can also lead to chronic pain and limited motion. "The right shoulder surgery can restore a painless range of motion, allowing the tennis player or weekend warrior to enjoy his or her favorite sport again," says Kevin Plancher, MD, Associate Clinical Professor in Orthopedics at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in NY. A partial shoulder replacement, called "ream and run" hemiarthroplasty, may be an excellent choice for a tennis player with severe arthritis, he says. In this shoulder surgery, only the ball is replaced and the socket is resurfaced to make it smoother and reshaped or reoriented, if need be. This procedure avoids the use of a plastic socket, requires less bone removal, uses a smaller incision, and has a quicker recovery time than a total joint replacement. The newest approach in joint replacement is a partial replacement with tissue regeneration. The orthopedic surgeon resurfaces the bony structures in the shoulder joint and replaces deteriorated cartilage with new synthetic compounds that are designed to promote the body's own healing within the joint, and dissolve away over time. This procedure is ideal for someone who would otherwise need bone grafts. The use of synthetic compounds replaces grafted tissue, and eliminates the need for a second surgery to harvest a bone graft, says Dr. Plancher. After a partial joint replacement surgery, you should be back on the court within 9 months, and your new shoulder joint should last about another 20 years. If your shoulder pain and mobility can't be managed with medication and physical therapy, ask your doctor whether you're a good candidate for a partial shoulder replacement. |
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