Modern medicine has become remarkably adept at treating a variety of shoulder, knee and hip injuries through arthroscopic surgery that repairs injuries that used to keep people, particularly athletes, on the shelf for months or years.
Now, it’s not uncommon to see a professional athlete recover in a matter of weeks from these injuries and such operations are becoming more and more commonplace even down to high school athletes.
However, there is still no getting around the pain the follows such surgery and heavy doses of serious narcotics such as codeine and morphine may be necessary during the recovery process.
While these drugs can be taken orally, another medical advance, the shoulder pain pump, is frequently used to pump pain medication directly into the shoulder through a catheter and provide more direct and effective relief.
Finely-tuned athletes, of course, recover faster than the rest of us who may undergo such surgery for arthritis, tears or other injuries. But for all of us there is no escape from the painful recovery and these pumps can be a godsend.
Be aware, however, that there can be a serious downside with the use of these pumps. Cartilage damage – with the tongue-twisting medical tag of Postarthroscopic Glenohumeral Chondrolysis -- can occur.
An American Journal of Sports Medicine published study found that for some patients the result can be long-lasting and even permanent damage that is extremely painful and can cause a debilitating restriction of the shoulder even worse than the original injury.
This can take several weeks to show up through symptoms such as shoulder weakness, grinding or popping noises, an inability to completely use the shoulder again or pain that won’t go away.
There also have been questions raised about the whether the devices have been thoroughly reviewed and whether the dangers outweigh the gains. Numerous lawsuits have been filed and legal Web sites are advertising for victims and class-action suits discussed.
It appears that while the shoulder pain pumps can be effective for many patients who undergo arthroscopic surgery others can be seriously affected in a negative way.
Pain Pump Class Action
