Torn Labrum recovery

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Anyone have any stats on recovery and additional years of service once this surgery is opted for?

When our son went through this in his 3rd year of Milb, we accepted the comments of the team ortho and trainer that all would be well in 5 months, he could play the entire season, have the surgery in Sept. and be ready and fully recovered by following February for Spring training.
He followed their professional advice and, come February, could not throw without pain and could not play.
I believe that around April of 2008, one of the MLB team ortho's reported a study of elbow and shoulder surgery patients that were followed.
As it relates to shoulder surgeries, which did not seem to be limited to labrum repairs but did include many, their study found less than 25% returned to the pre-injury level of play.

Infielddads numbers mirror what I have seen. If you go back and read the data, just 5 years or so ago, the number thrown around was 10 - 15%. The fact that they are now talking around the 25% number is encouraging if only that it may show that that the procedures are becoming more refined.

On my sons team, 3 players have had labrum surgery at about the same time. 2 of them no longer play, while 1 appears to have fully recovered. The two not playing were not fastidious about their rehab, while the recovered player followed rehab protocol to a T. This may be conincidental, but it is how it went down.

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The two not playing were not fastidious about their rehab, while the recovered player followed rehab protocol to a T. This may be conincidental, but it is how it went down

Ah geez, why not just be happy your son was able to fully recover?
Our son worked his butt off to rehab...went through pain, cortisone injections and a lot of good diagnostics with bad or incomplete disclosure and interpretations.
Found out that after working so hard post surgery for 7 months, he had more tears in his labrum...or maybe some not fully addressed in the first surgery.
Some are not as lucky as yours. Doesn't mean they didn't work hard or follow the rehab to a "T."
I'll leave it at that.

Son is almost 5 months after Labrum Slap Tear surgery on his right shoulder,(throwing). Shoulder is just starting to loosen up.He was cleared to start swinging but no throwing his rehab was recently changed and he is starting to feel much better.Hopefully he will be cleared to start throwing in early November.It's a Hard road but GOD willing he will recover.

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Originally posted by infielddad:

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The two not playing were not fastidious about their rehab, while the recovered player followed rehab protocol to a T. This may be conincidental, but it is how it went down

Ah geez, why not just be happy your son was able to fully recover?
Our son worked his butt off to rehab...went through pain, cortisone injections and a lot of good diagnostics with bad or incomplete disclosure and interpretations.
Found out that after working so hard post surgery for 7 months, he had more tears in his labrum...or maybe some not fully addressed in the first surgery.
Some are not as lucky as yours. Doesn't mean they didn't work hard or follow the rehab to a "T."
I'll leave it at that.

You read more into it than intended. Please don't twist it to mean that all failed recoveries are the result of not doing proper rehab.

It was a sharing of firsthand experience. The point was, that we'll never know if they could have recovered because they failed to do proper rehab.

Sorry you took it any other way, it's obviously still a raw nerve.

My son had the surgery in January and his MLB team had him throwing in Spring training. My brother is an ortho. surgeon and he didn't agree with that protocal. His partner is one of the best shoulder guys in Texas and he really didn't agree with it.

His shoulder hurt him throwing or not throwing. I told him don't even pick up a baseball until he wants to. He doesn't want to. He is satisfied to finish school. The MLB team told me that the odds of him returning if he opted for surgery were low. He had no choice. He would pitch about 15 to 20 innings and break down. He tried to work the area without surgery for some time. It would get him to the 15 or so innings but there was too much structurally wrong.

Good luck to those of you who had the surgery. Again, listen to the professionals who will tend to the recovery period. Take it slow and let it heal.

PP:
I would reccomend that when the time is right to schedule an appt. with Dr. Andrews,it's not that hard to get in, just hard to get to.(birmingham,al.).They have an awesome Therapy dept.The only downside is he does many surgery's.It's very busy!They say he's the best,
my Son is approaching 5 months. I never fully understood how gruelling it would be and i'm just watching! I give all these guy's alot of credit to go thru all this to play a game.I guess you gotta LOVE it!

For $10 you can get the booklet, PREVENTIVE & REHABILITATIVE EXERCISES FOR THE SHOULDER & ELBOW, 6th Edition , that is from The American Sports Medicine Institute. Andrews et. all, helped author this and it is what they use for rehab protocols and timing. I would tell anyone that it is required reading for arm injury rehab.

My sons trainer and Head Coach said they had their own rehab, and when I compared it to the book, they were nearly identical.

One thing that was incredibly important, was the use of 2 doses per day of 500mg. Rx Naproxin. This kept juniors shoulder loose and free from inflammation. He quit taking it half way through last season and it had immediate negative effects...loss of range of motion, pain. Restarting the Naproxin had immediate positive results, as the following week he pitched a complete game pain free.

So far this fall, he has not needed the continue the Naproxin, his shoulder remained loose and pain free and his velocity was back to 100%.

I will have my Son ask about the Naproxin,he was never given any.He does take aleeve (otc).I think that may be it.We purchased that book, it also contains a swing procedure.

CPLZ Congrats to your Son and you! I can only Pray that my Son can fully recover.Thanks for all your insite.

Aleve is Naproxen. Aleve is just a brand name.

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It was a sharing of firsthand experience. The point was, that we'll never know if they could have recovered because they failed to do proper rehab.

Perhaps I didn't express my view clearly. Sometimes, what our son's, and us, are told is the "proper" rehab isn't, even when it comes from what should or might be considered be "highly" reliable sources.
From what I was able to put together, and from what the MLB team ortho published, there is much to be learned and upgraded about what is the "proper rehab."
What is "proper" rehab also varies depending on the extent of labrum and other shoulder involvement.
If I have any "raw" nerve, it it is because my son heard comments from his MLB team's trainer which were similar to what you posted about those 2 other players, for about 8-12 weeks. As a result, he pushed himself harder, subjected himself to cortisone shots, and got worse.
As it turned out, the reason he got worse is because he was..and needed a major salvage surgery by Dr Andrews.
I am overjoyed whenever I read about any young man who has the courage and mental ability to recover and play following this surgery.
On the other hand, I make no judgments about the efforts or failure to follow "proper" rehab for those who don't.
Sometimes it just doesn't work.
Sometimes you are not provided reliable and proven advice on what is "proper."

"Proper" rehab may be a misnomer, because as you say, injuries differ, professional advice differs.

In the players circumstance I spoke of, they did not follow through with the rehab they were given. In their case, the commitment to rehab wasn't complete.

Some good points made here. I understand how infielddad feels, you put your trust in those you feel know best, work your butt off, only to find out that perhaps there was a misdiagnosis or someone missed somthing. All milb players are at the mercy of their organization. Most get no choice, especially the ones who are older and recovery time is not on their side. Often, there is a rush to recover.

Follow advice of the doctor, each situation is different, but if he feels something isn't right do some homework, make another appointment.

Remember, trainers are not doctors, they only follow an RX, recommended by the doctor. Sometimes the doctor makes general protocol that is not for every case, if there is discomfort after the conditioning and throwing program begins, some is normal and some may not be, I think that most are aware of that, make calls if there are concerns.

Most of the pitchers my son knows who had shoulder surgery have never fully recovered, either had limited time on the mound, with discomfort, loss of velo or control (takes lots of time to recover that) and gave up because it takes a very long time to recover than expected. Sometimes the complacency to not follow rehab is not because they have not lost the love of playing the game, but that life takes on a new meaning for other pursuits.

Not all doctors are created equal, most are very good at repairing, but not at diagnosing other existing problems.

One thing I might add, for pitchers with shoulder surgery, make sure that during the rehab period the pitcher works hard on his lower body conditioning, many players, especially those younger only concentrate of PT with the upper body. Shoulder problems usually arrive when pitchers (especially younger ones) do not use their lower body for the power needed, and are arm throwers, my understanding is that this is most essential in rehab and often not prescribed. My player had shoulder surgery 6 weeks ago (not a tear) and for the last 6 weeks his rehab has been concentrated on lower body, which he already uses, but is getting ready for lower to work with the upper body when he begins throwing. Also, a visit to a qualified pitching instructor should help to eliminate any mechanical issues that may have caused the injury. This is why many pitchers don't recover, they never address the real issue (unless an injury occured while playing) after surgery.

Just a suggestion.

i had this surgery and it took me about 26 months to get back over 90mph. i was 84-85 when i started pitching in games again, was 90-93 12 months later. its a tough and tidious rehab. i had a 3 year college career and a 8 year pro career after the surgery. im 34 now and still have a sound shoulder...................although i probably top out around 86 now, lol

Son threw yesterday for the first time 15 rainbow throws.He told me he feels good no pain,Thank GOD!
He is around 5 months since the surgery.He will now begin the Interval throwing program for position players.

Son now 6 months since slap tear surgery. He is following the interval throwing program throwing 90 feet with no pain!Thanks to Infield and Cleveland dad for all the great insite and information!

Congratulations!! Always good to hear a good recovery story. I know it is very scary when the injury first happens. Good to see progress. Hope things continue to get better and better. Good luck!

Gary, keep him and you positive throughout this journey! There will be times when he will feel some pain after throwing, dont get alarmed just back off a bit.
My son had 2 labrum surgeries within 13 mos of each other. Fortunately he is not a pitcher. He is doing really good now. Actually it wil be 12 mos on 12/19/09. His hitting never lost form, shoulder obviously still not the strongest, still doing the dumbbells and bands though pretty religiously.
Best of luck!

Son had to shut it down per Dr. Andrews due to pain throwing at 90 ft.He will resume throwing early January. Happy Holidys to All!!

Sorry to hear, keep the positive motivation

For any of you guys going through Shoulder pain/surgery/recovery now...I'm posting an article/podcast each week as I progress through my recovery.

I finished my college career last year (1st Team Rawlings All-American) ...and recently had my throwing shoulder fixed. (torn labrum and damaged rotator cuff)

I'm starting PT next week and have been keeping track of my progress throughout.

This is my second time through this process (sophomore year in HS...2001 - catching shoulder torn labrum, required surgery)...so I'm familiar with the process

Are you in pro ball now, or shooting for it?

I was offerred a contract from the Washington Wild Things...an Independent League Team in Washington, PA last summer...

but things fell through when my arm acted up. I'm definitley not done playing though.

My son got his first official collegiate outing today. It's also his first spring outing since having labrum surgery 6/20/08 following high school graduation. He's worked very hard and things seem to be looking up!!

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Originally posted by SoutherNo1:
My son got his first official collegiate outing today. It's also his first spring outing since having labrum surgery 6/20/08 following high school graduation. He's worked very hard and things seem to be looking up!!

Son had surgery 6/9/09 still can't throw and in pain.Going for MRI today.He did all rehab to the tee etc...

I wish you nothing but the best Gary. This is a tough thing to deal with when a kid has invested so much.

Southern No.1, Thanks! Can you pm me on how your Son got Healthy? I could use some direction.Thanks!

As an encouragement to those out there, I'll give an update on my boy.

Had labrum surgery in April 08. Due to the injury he missed the opportunity to accompany his team to the 2008 NAIA World Series.

Was able to take the mound at start of the 09 season, but got off to a rocky start. Had an ERA north of 10 at end of February and he was considering whether he wanted to continue playing.

As the weather warmed up, he started showing signs of getting it back. By the end of the season he'd pitched a complete 9-inning win in the 2009 conference tournament and had made it from being off the travel roster to #2 pitcher. Unfortunately his team fell 2 games short of making a repeat trip to the NAIA World series.

This season he's thrown 3 consecutive complete games. Last week he set a new school record for strikeouts in a game.

While he's probably not the same pitcher he would've been had the injury not occurred, he's made the best of the situation.

It takes some patience, luck, and a lot of hard work.

My son is a high school baseball pitcher. He was clocked at 85-88 mph the summer before his sophomore year (15 yrs. old). The next summer (June 2009) he had an accident sliding into first base and tore his labrum. He had surgery June 25, 2009. He has worked very hard to come back. He had his first pitching lesson two weeks ago and did very well. He will be pitching his first game this coming Friday 4-9-10. He says there is pain when he starts throwing, but it goes away with more throwing. He is easily able to throw a 60-70 pitch bullpen. Pre-surgery, he had much longevity in pitching...It was not unusual for him to throw a full game. He can't wait to have his old shoulder back. The surgeon and coaches think he is well on his way to coming back. Everyone tells us not to push this and overdo it. What exactly does that mean? And how long will it be before his velocity will be back 100 percent? This is a very big summer for him with recruiting. I would be very interested in any feedback. This has been a very long process.

I think there are a lot of factors in determining when you get back to "100%."

The severity of the injury and amount of surgery required to fix the problem comes into play. No two people are alike, so the time it takes for you to recover physically, and mentally, may be different.

In my son's case, it took about a year to get most of his velocity back. It took another year for him to regain the type of command that he had prior to the surgery. However, he did not pitch between seasons at all.

Hey, I'm glad I stumbled across this site while searching the recovery time of a Torn Labrum.

My brother has it and he is playing through it this season, surgery scheduled near the end of May. He did not get to pitch and had to move from SS to 2b.

Ive only heard bad things about the recovery till this I see some guys are able to start back throwin in a few months. His PT is scheduled for 3 days after surgery, is that a little soon ?

Also, whats the time after surgery you can begin doin normal activities such as running etc, any advise would be great.

Son threw 89 MPH after soph year - heard from over 100 schools. Then had inexplicable loss of velo his junior year. That summer shoulder started to hurt. Ended up needing surgery on Dec. 15 of senior season - removed bursa, trimmed labrum, did sub-acromial decompression (trimmed bone spur that was rubbing tendon)- and a few other things. Was able to hit by Feb. - and pitched in game by May. Lost all D1 interest - but signed NAIA and played two ways his freshman season. Velo still isn't back to previous levels after 18 months - but close. Biggest thing is he is pain-free and playing ball.

Is this based on your "medical" knowledge or just your opinion?