Impingement Disease....Now what???

Bond007 · 10-20-2003, 04:22 PM

I just got back from the orthopedist and I've been diagnosed with impingement disease in my left shoulder. I did get a horse injection and now my shoulder just feels like it's floating. I can't remember everything that was in the shot, some kind of numbing agent, cortisone and a steroid of some sort. I don't know, it all happened so fast and I was concentrating more on the damn needle than what the doc was saying.

I go back in two weeks for a checkup to see how my shoulder has reacted to the injection. If I'm doing pretty good, then I'll start PT to strengthen some of the smaller muscles in the shoulder so that it'll get pulled down and away from the hook on the acromion. If the pain's back with a vengeance, then it's time for the knife. This is gonna be the longest 2 weeks of my life!!

So, now I'm off weight training for at least 2 weeks. I know I can't do any exercises that involve shoulder movement, but I'd like to stay in the game somehow. Anyone got any ideas? I can probably still do anything for legs and abs. I'm also thinking that I can do quite a few biceps & triceps exercises. But, shoulders (obviously), chest and back are mostly completely out of the question.

Or, should I just lay low and focus only on cardio for the next couple of weeks?

Kaiser · 10-20-2003, 04:32 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Bond007:
I did get a horse injection and now my shoulder just feels like it's floating. I can't remember everything that was in the shot, some kind of numbing agent, cortisone and a steroid of some sort.

My bet would be that it was Kenalog, dexamethasone (sp?), or a combo of both. A favorite among orthopedists.

Best of luck to you with that. Those shots take care of the pain and inflammation, but not the underlying problem; in addition, although rare in just one shot, they can weaken supporting structures in the joint. Please remember that when your shoulder feels great for the next 4-10 weeks and at least take it easier than normal.

Kaiser, multiple steroid shot certified since 1995.

Bond007 · 10-20-2003, 04:46 PM

I had this same thing with my right shoulder in Feb. 2001 and that shot only helped me feel better for about 7 days. After that, I was in interminable pain, thus surgery was necessary to correct the disfigured acromion.

My doc compared my right shoulder x-ray from 2001 with my left one from today and it was easy to see why the left took so much longer to cause me pain. While the hook is there, it's only about 3/4 the size of the hook that was on my right acromion. With the history I've had with the right, I'm not banking too much on the shot and PT working. Maybe that's the wrong attitude to take, but I'd really prefer to just have the surgery, get the bone re-shaped so I can get back in the gym and KNOW that I won't have these problems anymore.

Either way, this whole thing still sucks swamp water...