Oh Faron! You crack me up lol Your pain tolerance sounds a lot like mine...non existent!

I also had a small tear, I wore a (very comfortable) neoprene brace for 3 months...it healed and Im ' good now. I have excellent insurance(not obama care)...and they told me doc gets 240K for the surgery!!!!! Doctors that are surgeons have a very high incentive to suggest surgery...office call..100 bucks...surgery...240 K.....

Just saying...think long and hard.

LOL Monicakm!!!

I wasn't talking about "pain" per-se in this post tho'. The 1st 2 weeks of this injury however, WERE kind of a B*tch though. The first 3 days....10/10. Happened last Christmas.

Just the seeming "newness/weirdness" of going thru a study like this. Stem-Cells being injected back into the shoulder......seems sorta "Sci-fi"!

Faron

Donna, would you mind telling us the name of your neoprene brace? DH has a pulled rotator cuff. Chiro said it wasn't "torn" but it's been injured. That was Thanksgiving Day and it's still hurting him. He often wakes up at night in horrible pain :( So far I haven't been able to talk him into going to the Dr. He's been to a chiropractor 4x but it's not routine...or enough! His job is physically demanding and the state of Texas will crumble if he's not "on the job" :o I've suggested he might be more comfortable with a brace but he's "fine" (except when he's NOT) :(

Well it hurt me just reading about it lol DH's rotator cuff injury was last Thanksgiving. I don't know how he's continued to work. Last time our daughter was here I grabbed her before she could leave and asked her to help me shake out a couple of king size comforters. He even has a hard time putting on his coat. He's really limited in his movement.

Monicakm- Oh my. If your DH is STILL having a hard time even putting on a coat, well....that's not the best of signs. I don't know if it'll get much better I'm afraid. The way he's being hard on it isn't conducive to much healing. My PA reminded me that soft-tissue injuries like mine CAN be 3-6 MONTHS. I thought I originally heard 3-6 WEEKS. Grrrrr.

I'm SO curious about this possible Stem-Cell stuff! For a shoulder?!?!?!?

Faron

Faron - I've been following some of the research on this at Brigham and Women's health in Boston. It's an ongoing study and there have been some positive results reported with the efficacy of stem cell transplants in cartilage repair. Other institutions have been working on similar studies.

http://www.brighamandwomens.org/Departments_and_Services/orthopedics/advances-enewsletter/BWH-stem-cell-research-for-cartilage-repair.aspx

Maire

My brace looks exactly like this one..they are all over the net ..just google neoprene shoulder brace..make sure to order right or left..they aren't reversible!Also..some I see don't have that extra flap with the velcro on top of the shoulder..that thing was what took the pain away for me..as soon as I cinched that up, I felt so much better.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/left-shoulder-support-strap-neoprene-brace-dislocation-injury-arthritis-pain-/331564813112

Faron, I hope you qualify! Is that bad of me? Think how interesting it will be. Except the shot in the shoulder, those needles are as big and long as the same they use on cattle. lol.

Donna, not sure where you live, but shoulder sugery isn't expensive at all. Without insurance it's under $10,000 here for a rotator cuff repair. Doctors get a bad rap. Good doctors only recommend surgery when needed.

My son had a torn labrum which is much more complicated than a cuff, and his itemized bill was pretty decent, even though we had insurance covering it.

ETA: Also Donna, even though your tear is healed, it's still weak tissue. Just keep an eye on it.

Faron, it sounds like a good thing! Doesn't sound like there would be risks involved to you, but I would definitely ask about that. It's something that could maybe benefit others in the future, perhaps you too. I think it would be a cool thing to do. Keep us posted.

Just a few comments about this technology. I am a Labor and Delivery RN where we collect stem cells from the placenta after delivery. These cells are then used in research for joint replacements and cancer patients. Part of the placenta can be used in eye surgery and for grafting in burn victims. We got a certification of appreciation due to our placentas being used for the Boston bombing victims. We have collected stem cells and the placentas for several years.

About a year ago we started harvesting amniotic fluid from our scheduled Cesarean Section patients. This fluid is being used to grow synovial fluid for cartilage repair. Oops just saw this mentioned in the article. Several of us older RN's have asked how we can get these injections in our knees and hips! It's just amazing what they can do with these cells that previously were just disposed of.

Got my "initial U/S" estimate in the mail. This would be the one I pay for, to see if any tears present are the right size for what they want in the study.

One is more complete than the other. I gotta look at again..... One had a "reading fee" of $26. The other notes a $206 fee. Huh?!

Faron

Looking at the sheet now...

Choice #1: Ultrasound extremity Complete- Reading.....$77.00 Technician fee = $204 for this one.

OR

Choice #2: Ultrasound extremity Limited- Reading....$60.00 Technician fee $28.

Obviously, I'm a fan of the "Limited" one for $88.00 total, vs $281!! Am I being too cheap? Will it be too limited for a good reading of shoulder?

Thanks for any ideas Guys!

Faron

Thanks MC! I needed someone to tell me not to "short shrift" my troublesome right shoulder.

B4 refilling my Diclofenac Rx, the PA who I've seen for this shoulder wanted a new basic blood-panel. Uff....Just had one last Oct for annual physical! Diclofenac can be a little hard on kidneys I guess, but mine has always been fine. Today's test was fine too! Sheesh I hate getting tests that close together! My Creatinine (?) level was fine.

Faron