Possible Torn Labrum - MRI Scheduled - JP Fitness Forums

Blackjack · 06-26-2006, 03:34 PM

Did pt for a month, went back to my GP who took an x-ray everything looks good on that. No calcium, spurs, etc. Possible torn labrum - this comes from both my GP and a DPT. Scheduled my MRI tomorrow afternoon so we'll find out for sure.

Anyone every dealt with this? Assuming surgery to repair - how long recovery and what does that entail?

Not so much a concern from a workout perspective although that's very important. I understand injuries are part of the lifestyle and I've been very lucky up until now. But my wife and I are expecting a baby in late November and with a two year old running around, I want to make sure I can do my share.

Any experiences/advice would be helpful.

Thanks in advance.

Ted

russ · 06-26-2006, 04:29 PM

Will you be having an MRI arthrogram (i.e., an injection into the joint prior to the MRI)? Plain MRI is often insufficient in the diagnosis of labral tears.

Blackjack · 06-27-2006, 07:09 AM

That's a good question I'll have to ask this afternoon. There is a section on my referral that's called "Contrast" and they check up to radiologist's discretion so that may be what that's referring to. Thanks for the heads up though.

Bill Hartman · 06-27-2006, 03:06 PM

Rehab or surgery can depend on the type and severity of symptoms. There have been baseball pitchers return to throwing with torn labrums. In fact, a study involving baseball players showed a majority of them already had labral tears but were asymptomatic.

Bill

Blackjack · 06-28-2006, 12:15 PM

So the diagnosis has come back with no problems showing. However, I have two concerns.

1. The radiologist didn't do any injections prior to the MRI, so I'm concerned based on Russ' post above.

2. My doctor read the MRI himself, not that he's not knowledgeable, but I was under the impression maybe an ortho should review.

What I'm worried about is that my doctor said that if there is a tear, a cortisone shot will make it worse. So I don't want there to be a mis-diagnosis based on point 1 or point 2 above.

Any advice?

Ted

russ · 06-28-2006, 05:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blackjack

So the diagnosis has come back with no problems showing. However, I have two concerns.

1. The radiologist didn't do any injections prior to the MRI, so I'm concerned based on Russ' post above.

2. My doctor read the MRI himself, not that he's not knowledgeable, but I was under the impression maybe an ortho should review.

What I'm worried about is that my doctor said that if there is a tear, a cortisone shot will make it worse. So I don't want there to be a mis-diagnosis based on point 1 or point 2 above.

Any advice?

Ted

Are you saying that your GP reviewed the MRI and a Radiologist provided the official interpretation, or that your GP interpreted the study? Very few GPs would be qualified to provide anything beyond a very basic interpretation of an MRI. A GP who does a lot of sports medicine may be able to provide a somewhat adequate interpretation of a shoulder MRI, though certainly not at the level of a Radiologist. Orthopedic Surgeons may be able to interpret shoulder MRIs at the level of a general Radiologist, but not at the level of a Radiologist who specialises in musculoskeletal imaging. Now that I have that out the way......I would make sure that your study has been interpreted by a Radiologist, and it would be a good idea to have your shoulder evaluated by either a Sports Medicine physician (usually a GP who has a special interest in and advanced knowledge of sports injuries) or an Orthopedist. They can decide if they feel that the MRI should be repeated with an injection into the joint.

Feel free to post a copy of the report of your MRI here if you have any questions.

Blackjack · 06-29-2006, 05:15 AM

Russ, I appreciate the response. I have an appt this a.m. to get the cortisone shot but will ask questions regarding who actually interpretted the MRI. Actually my wife (she's a PTA) was surprised when I told her the doc looked at it too - she thought a radiologist or an ortho should review as well.

Thanks again and I'll let you know what I find out.

Ted

Blackjack · 06-29-2006, 08:51 AM

So I decided to forgoe the cortizone injection and get a second opinion from a Ortho with Sport Med specialty. As I said before, I don't have a lot of time to mess around with this - my wife is due with our second child in late November and I want this over and done with. I didn't want to risk further damage with a cortizone shot. So I have to wait about 3-weeks to get into this ortho so we'll see.

BTW, the MRI analysis was done both by my doc and a radiologist.

Thanks again Russ.