Caring for all your orthopaedic & maxillofacial needs
Tel: 03 4432 7575
Shoulder, Elbow, Wrist and Hand
Arthritis, Stiffness & joint pain
If the cartilage in a joint is damaged or worn away, a joint can become stiff and painful. This can be inherited or it can occur through injury, inflammation or with day to day use over time. If your joint pain and function is stopping you enjoying life, there are multiple non-surgical and surgical options available to relieve pain. If your answer is "yes" to any of the below questions, you may have arthritis.
Is your shoulder, elbow or hand becoming more painful over time?
Do you have persisting pain in your shoulder, elbow or hand that started after a minor injury or no injury?
Do you have difficulty performing tasks that used to be easy such as hanging the washing, lifting objects onto a high shelf, washing your hair or driving the car?
Do you feel restricted in movement when reaching behind your back, to your hair, or above your head?
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Rotator cuff injury, bursitis and impingement
The shoulder joint is much like a golf ball on a golf tee with a big articulating ball on a shallow cup. The rotator cuff muscles and their tendons attach to the ball and cause the ball to rotate and stay against the cup during movement. If the tendons tear or the muscles are weak, this can lead to pain, impingement, bursitis and poor movement, and there are multiple non-surgical and surgical options available to improve function. If your answer is "yes" to any of the below questions, you may have a rotator cuff tear.
Do you have severe pain in the shoulder at night that started after an injury?
Do you have difficulty lifting the arm above your head without help from your other arm?
Do you feel unable to hold a weight above shoulder height for any length of time?
Do you find it painful to lift your arm behind your back?
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Instability and dislocation
If you had an injury that led to your joint coming out of socket (dislocation) or your joint moved in an abnormal way, injury to the bone or soft tissue around the joint can leave the joint feeling like it might dislocate again. This can interfere with sport, work or day to day life and ongoing instability episodes can damage the joint and lead to early arthritis. Review and imaging can determine the best non-surgical and surgical approaches to improve the stability of your joint. If your answer is "yes" to any of the below questions, you may have joint instability.
Have you felt the joint slip out of place in the past 6 months?
Do you avoid any activities due to worry that your joint might dislocate or slip out of joint?
Is the joint constantly ‘on your mind’ and something you think about when performing activities?
Do you protect the joint or avoid laying I certain positions in bed at night because of the joint?
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