Labral Tear

Bigger Stronger Leaner Injuries and Rehab
1

hey all
ive been diagnosed with a small anterior labral tear in my left shoulder - ive delt with it for about 18 months now and been pretty limited in my training in that time (insurance issues - pre existing injury so had to wait) however im finally going under the knife at the end of the month (ive tried rehab but still getting pain when i lift)

im 26 and all im concerned with is getting back in the gym pain free.

has anyone had the surgery, how long did it take to recover (read: being unrestricted in the gym) and should I make a full recovery (so long as they dont find anything else that need doing)

thanks

knap

2

I had shoulder surgery in May 2010 for a full-thickness rotator cuff tear (supraspinatus) plus complete muscle retraction (five anchors placed). Also had subacromial decompression. A labral tear is different, but the recovery process is somewhat similar. The key is that your surgeon really doesn’t know what he/she will find until getting in there.

I was back in the gym doing cardio five days after surgery. Started PT four weeks after surgery. Started PT weighted exercises seven weeks after surgery. Started squatting and DLing the bar about two months after surgery. Benched the bar about four months after surgery. And did a powerlifting meet (with relatively light weights) 6.5 months after surgery.

Good luck.

3

[quote]kpsnap wrote:
The key is that your surgeon really doesn’t know what he/she will find until getting in there.
[/quote]

^ This.

MRI’s are great but don’t give the complete picture. Many times, after the doctor goes in for the scope they find many other issues that need repair.

If it is just a basic labral repair, it will be a timeline similar to kpsnap, although I personally feel getting some basic, non-manipulative, low level therapy in the initial 4 week post-op period would be very helpful (modalities, etc). But good luck with insurance companies approving them.

I would also highly recommend speaking with your surgeon regarding this. If they are a good orthopedic practice, they should have plenty of post-op procedures and timelines to follow as a guide. Also, when you speak with you physician (either before the surgery or during your post-op follow up), let him/her know your specific goals and what level you want to perform at again.

4

thanks alot for the replies

im really hoping its just the labral tear, been going out of my mind for the past 18 months on a restricted program…ego taken quite the battering haha

fingers crossed by mid year all is back to normal

thanks again

5

I had a labral repair…and lift and have had about 22 fights since then…and I was rated with 12% loss of use.over head stuff is tough,and anything in the back motion…but overall pretty good