Sacramento Shoulder Fracture Lawyer

I’m Ed Smith, a Sacramento Shoulder Fracture Lawyer. When people think about shoulder injuries, they often think about bursitis, rotator cuff tears, and shoulder dislocations. While these are important, it is vital for people to remember that the shoulder is a bony structure that can be fractured like any other. Those who have fractured their shoulder must remember some important facts about this serious injury.

There are many different ways that a patient can sustain a shoulder fracture. The majority of shoulder fractures result from some sort of trauma, such as a fall injury. The direct force applied to the shoulder or shoulder socket is the typical cause of a fracture. In an auto accident, a patient could sustain trauma to their shoulder if they get t-boned and their shoulder collides with the door or the window. This type of extreme force is required to break such a thick bone. People can also break their shoulder through contact sports, such as football. These are only a few of the many ways that a shoulder might be fractured.

The symptoms of this bone fracture are similar to that of other fractures. Most patients will be unable to move their shoulder without pain because the bone fragments will scrape against each other when they move. Patients could also notice an obvious deformity in their shoulder when they take a look or touch their shoulder. Furthermore, people use their shoulder to eat and pick up items. These tasks could prove difficult or even impossible with a shoulder fracture. It is also not unusual to see shoulder fractures associated with other injuries. It is possible that a patient could have a humerus fracture or a shoulder dislocation along with a fracture of their shoulder. It is important to look for these other injuries whenever a shoulder fracture is suspected. These injuries could prove to be severe if missed.

A patient who is suspected of having a shoulder fracture will be diagnosed using the combination of imaging scans along with a history and physical exam. The doctor is going to ask the patient how they sustained their injury and when the symptoms developed. Once this has been completed, the physician will look at the shoulder for any swelling or obvious deformity that could exist with a fracture or shoulder dislocation. After this, the patient will be requested to perform a few physical exam movements to help decide whether or not imaging scans are necessary. Typically, imaging scans, such as x-rays or an MRI, will be performed to get a better look at the bones and ligaments themselves. These scans will be used to determine whether or not a fracture has been sustained and, if a fracture does exist, how severe the fracture is and whether or not it requires surgery to be fixed.

Most patients who suffer a shoulder fracture in any way are going to be in a significant amount of pain and will likely be unable to move the shoulder without the pain worsening. Therefore, physicians and nurses will try to control the patient's pain using any means necessary. While opiates are not preferred, they could be necessary to keep the patient's symptoms under control. Anti-inflammatory and other non-narcotic medications will also be tried and used to avoid opioid medications. If the patient requires surgery, narcotic medications will be used sparingly because they can impact a patient's ability to breathe while asleep for the procedure. After this, the shoulder will need to be immobilized to prevent further injury to the shoulder and other structures in the area. Once this has been taken care of, the imaging scans will be used to decide whether or not a patient requires surgery to fix their shoulder. If so, this procedure will be done to repair the fracture, possibly using screws and plates to keep the bones in place. After surgery, the shoulder will be placed in a sling or cast. This is necessary to ensure that the shoulder doesn't move out of place, undoing all of the work that placed the bones back into their proper alignment.

A shoulder fracture has the potential to damage a number of different peripheral nerves, such as the axillary nerve, that run in the vicinity. If these nerves are injured, it can lead to motor and sensory deficits in the upper limbs. Another complication is damage to the rotator cuff, which provides the strength and cushion that is necessary to generate force with movement of the shoulder. It is also possible that someone who has suffered a shoulder fracture could develop arthritis at an earlier age. These are serious issues that could greatly impact the patient's quality of life. With fractures of the shoulder, an open break that requires surgery has the potential to get infected as well. These are major issues that patients should be aware of.

I’m Ed Smith, a Sacramento Shoulder Fracture Lawyer. People use their shoulders to play sports, eat, and work, making injuries to this part of the body particularly serious. If you or someone you love has fractured their shoulder, please call me for free, friendly advice. I can be reached at 916.921.6400.

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Image Attribution: used with permission from the CC BY SA License, version 3.0. Via Wikimedia Commons.

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