My Rheumy thinks that I have an injury to my rotator cuff. The only way he can tell for sure is to do an ultrasound. The only problem is that I don't have any insurance. I am still paying off a bill from Oct. 2004 for a CT scan. I am in so much pain and have trouble moving my left arm. I have tried exercise pamphlet he gave me but it's not helping. I am doing really well with my RA since I've started Humira but this damn shoulder is really affecting my life. I work in a MD Derm office and have to file and pull charts, etc. and I have trouble doing it. It's not fair to me or my co-workers that I can barely do these things. I don't know what to do.....
Elda
Fairy - I would do some research on injury to rotator cuffs, and see what you can do yourself. Off hand, I can think of perhaps wearing a sling during your lunch hour and any time you are not being paid to work. You could ice down your shoulder during lunchtime too.
At home, try lying down flat on your bed with your whole arm in the sling position on two pillows to achieve proper alignment with the body, and ice down the shoulder area for ten minutes every hour might also help. I would do this immediately after coming home after work and all weekend until you get some relief and can afford the ultrasound.
I am surprised your doctor didn't give you just some simple, practical advise. RICE: Rest Ice (compression (not in this case)-Sling) Elevation (neutral for shoulders), but then ultrasounds keeps him out of litigation. Six weeks or more is typical for healing of a shoulder injury, unless you need surgery, so keep at it. Good luck Cathy
Ouch....I don't have any advice, I just wanted to say good luck.I'm so sorry to hear about your rotator cuff injury. I know that can be very painful on top of the RA. You have been given great advice by Cathy in regards to how to care for it until some day you can get it repaired.
I hope that some time you can have insurance and get it fixed. My mom just had rotator cuff surgery and it was a breeze. She had many problems with it like you and it was a relief. (Just for future reference.)
In the meantime, sending lots of prayers, please take good care of yourself and rest it when you are able. Please let us know how you are doing!
Hugs,
Jen
Elda,
My husband has problems w/Rotator cuff. He gets a cortizone shot 2 to 3 times a year and it really does help with the pain and lasts quite a while. Using a sling when you can will help heal the problem, but for dealing with the pain, I understand the cortisone shots are not very expensive and would help you tremendously during this time while you are uninsured.
PS: I am so suprised to hear you work for a MD that doesn't provide you with the opportunity for group medical. Maybe I'm naive, but that just really surprises me. I hope you can find a way to get some help soon.
I'd suggest going to an orthopedic doctor or a physical therapist.
You have to be careful with a shoulder injury, and if you sling it or try to keep it elevated etc., and that's not what you should be doing you could wind up with frozen shoulder which is extremely painful.
A good physical therapist can do an evaluation and give you some exercises to do.
To get a true picture of your shoulder, an MRI is needed. Been there, done that...I had a S.L.A.P. Lesion, rotator cuff tear. Had to have surgery. My bicep was off and had to be reconnected to a different spot. Not fun.
Just be careful and see someone. Ice is an awesome help and cortisone can help, depending what the issue is. Good luck
Sorry sorry to hear about the shoulder. I had shoulder surgery a year ago and they thought it was rotater cuff, but the MRI and CT didn't show any problems. After PT and cortisone injections I still could not lift my arm up. They did a scope in the back of the shoulder and found that the rotater cuff was perfect, they then went around to the front of the surgery in an open incision and found there was a large bone spur that "hooked" and the tendons and muscles were being caught in it. My biceps tendon also was damaged. They removed the spur, repaired the bicep and did a bursectomy for the arthritis in the joint. It is so much better know. Good Luck!thanks for all the great advice. I used to work in PT and have a friend that is an excellent Physical Therapist that said she would help out. We are just about 70+ miles away from each other, but she will take good care of me. My Rheumy cuts me a great discount b/c of the no insurance so, I may have to see him soon for some kind of relief. My husband just got fired on Friday, so it's going to be hard to pay for the visit. My Rheumy said that I might need a sling but I don't want to freeze my shoulder. I know it seems crazy but the MD I work for not only doesn't provide insurance but I only get paid once a month, so after bills, I really have to watch what I spend so it can last the rest of the month. It wasn't as big of a problem before hubby got fired. We've only been married a month and been living together for 6 months. I will try the advice from Cathy and hopefully get some relief. Thank you all SO MUCH for your input and just knowing other people care makes a BIG difference. You people help just as much as Md's, meds and everything else!