Reverse Shoulder Replacement RTR - swollen

[Leealicatz]

On Feb 3, 2023 while out walking my dog I tripped on a frozen chunk of snow on the road and came down hard on my right shoulder
I immediately knew I had dislocated it at least. I got myself up and back to the house and went to ER
I dislocated it AND broke the head of the humorous off - I mean OFF.
Trauma surgeon told me I didn't have arthritis in shoulder so he was not doing a replacement but would fix it with a plate and screws.
He left the arm subluxated saying the muscles would pull the arm back into place by themselves
8 weeks later it was still subluxated. He offered to try a closed reduction but said he gave it a 25% chance of muscles holding it in place
Upper arm was swollen and had been since the surgery, xray showed fracture had healed, I had limited range of motion even after 6 weeks of PT
Nerve pain was still intense and I had sporadic muscle spasms
Surgeon referred me to an Ortho Shoulder specialist - didn't get in to see him until Sept
On Dec 7 he did a total reverse shoulder replacement - removed the plate and screws, removed some bone fragments and clean out some scar tissue.
I'm out of the sling, started PT
Pain is limited to pull of scar tissue and tightness because of the swelling
it is also painful to the touch and I don't know if that is due to internal bruising
Anyone know how to reduce the swelling? I use both ice and heat alternately and massage - anything else to try?

 

[CricketHip]

Hi @Leealicatz and to our forum.

Boy, you've had a tough time of things, haven't you? I am so sorry!
It doesn't surprise me that you have some chronic swelling, your soft tissues have been under duress for many months.
Here on BoneSmart we are huge fans of icing for at least 40 minutes at a time.
So you would do 40 minutes on, then 20 minutes off and repeat hourly, making sure to keep the ice packs from direct contact with your skin to avoid damage to your skin.

Manual Lymphatic Drainage (MLD) would so very beneficial to you, if you can find someone trained in your area. Your best bet is to look for a licensed LMT -licensed massage therapist- with further certification in MLD, preferably in the Vodder technique.
I would be glad to help you search for someone if you'd like.

For now, if you can raise your right arm up high enough to access your armpit with your left hand, you can gently massage your armpit area to help stimulate the lymph nodes located there. Massage them with your ending stroke directed towards midline, like towards your heart. You need to also gently massage the area around your collarbones, too.. the key for that area is GENTLY.
Something that simple just may be all you need to get some relief.
A MLD therapist would be best, though.

 

[CricketHip]

One more thing.. I had a similar traumatic injury, years ago. I crashed on my bike and crushed my elbow joint.
I had to wait a couple days for surgery so the swelling was so bad.. my hand and fingers were so purple, they looked black.
I had extensive repair surgery with pins, screws and even a small bar wired into place.
The swelling just wouldn't go down and the surgeon had to split my cast to relieve the pressure.
After a couple weeks with the swelling still bad, in desperation, I got on my recumbent bike and started pedaling, thinking that the increase in circulation might help. I would hold my arm up over my head, well, as best as I could with a heavy cast with ace bandages wrapped over it and a fractured rib on that side, too--and the swelling went down!
I thought I'd share this, in case it helps somehow, also.

 

[Leealicatz]

I have a friend who is a LMT and knows the MLD technique you refer to - and my PT agreed with you - I had my first session last Thursday

I wish I could raise my arm up high as was suggested - but not there yet

Thanks for your suggestions