Unfortunately, injuries in sports are common. Our joints, tendons and bones just can’t handle the stress that vigorous activities place on them. These injuries are even more common when playing full contact sports like soccer or football. Whether it’s due to a nasty fall or just overuse, some of the most common injuries in sports occur in the shoulder. Keep reading to learn about labral tears in your shoulder and how our Brampton sports injury rehab services can help you!
Three of the most common types of shoulder tears include:
- SLAP tears: A superior labrum from anterior to posterior (SLAP) tear commonly happens to athletes who participate in sports that include constant overhead motion. Baseball pitchers and tennis players visit us on a regular basis to rehab and get back to normal after this type of tear.
- Posterior labral tears: These tears are less common than SLAP tears, but are still seen in athletes across the nation. When this injury happens, the rotator cuff and labrum get pinched in the back of the athlete’s shoulder.
- Bankart lesions: A player with a Bankart lesion has dislocated his shoulder. When the shoulder comes out of the joint, the labrum can tear, providing for an incredibly painful experience that will necessitate surgery and rehab. If a player skips rehab, the shoulder is more likely to dislocate in the future.
Symptoms of a torn shoulder are about what you’d expect, as they’re similar to the types of symptoms you’ll encounter with most other serious injuries:
- Pain: If you’ve sustained a shoulder injury, you’re bound to experience some pain when participating in overhead activities. The level of pain you experience depends on the type and severity of the injury. You may also have some pain while doing everyday activities.
- Unusual sensations: Most people report a grinding feeling when moving their shoulder after an injury. Other common sensations include catching, locking and abnormal popping.
- Loss of strength: If you’ve injured your shoulder, you’re not going to be as strong as you usually are. Picking up heavy objects may be difficult or even impossible until you’ve had surgery and undergone rehab.
If you’ve experienced a SLAP tear or have sustained any other injury to your shoulder, Brampton sports injury rehab is a must. The only way to get your shoulder back to where it was before the injury is through three to four months of rehab after your surgery.
You can expect to be in a sling for a few weeks directly following your surgery. Once you’re free from the sling, you’ll need to give us a call for rehab! Our medical professionals will give you small exercises that will increase in difficulty over the course of your rehabilitation. The exact course of rehab we take will depend on what type of tear you suffered, as well as the severity of the tear. Regardless, we’ll start doing weightless exercises and gradually move on to exercises that include weights. You can trust that whatever your injury may be, we’ll be able to get you back to normal before you know it!
If you’re recovering from surgery or are suffering from some type of pain, give Paramount Physiotherapy & Sports Injuries Clinic a call. Our medical professionals have decades of experience relieving pain and rehabilitating injured athletes.