Double shoulder dislocation

[evo4a]

What was supposed to be a pleasant family day turned out to be a living nightmare.
I took the family, wife and son to Airkix Milton Keynes for an indoor skydiving experience, first go my wife is just about to end her 1 minute flight when she just sort of collapses out of the exit.
I could tell she had done something serious, the way she was holding her hands down I thought she had dislocated her finger, she kept saying "it's both of them".
After a few seconds I realised she meant she had fully dislocated both shoulders and was in agony.
Paramedics had never seen a double, took about 2 hrs to get her drugged up and moved to the hospital.
In hospital no one had ever seen a double either, she was put under in the end to relocate them.
She is home now, quite heavily sedated.
I'm looking for some info from people who have dislocated shoulders as to what her recovery time is likely to be.
Even the slings are causing problems as she hasn't got a good shoulder to put them over....

Edited by evo4a on Saturday 14th September 21:43

[JumboBeef]

Two hours to move someone who can walk......?

I hopes she is better soon. Recovery time is about the same as a facture.

[evo4a]

I think the issue was pain management ....
To be honest it was all a bit of a blur, horrible to see your wife in such agony.
the injury occurred at about 11.30, I think they relocated the shoulders at about 3pm. It may have been less time to get her to hospital, just seemed like forever. She had to have the flight suit cut off at Airfix and I suppose they wanted to make sure it was safe to move her.
The paramedics, nurses and doctors were great.

Edited by evo4a on Saturday 14th September 21:55

[InertialTooth45]

Can't really offer any advice but I can fully sympathise. I'm currently laid up with a separated shoulder. (collar bone dislocated rather than arm bone) Combined with some serious bruising and muscle damage to the chest and shoulders I was in agony for the first few hours and days. It's been 10 days now and movement and general tasks aren't really a problem but I'm in a sling for the next 4 weeks waiting for the tendons to reattach. Not a lot of fun and a lot of discomfort at times.

[Regiment]

I thought dislocated shoulders were as simple as pop it back into place and some ice? Having seen so many shoulder dislocations, I've never come across massive agony and having to be put under a general anaesthetic to be relocated?

[gjf764]

Horribly painful, maybe get in touch with a specialist shoulder surgeon. I had my latest shoulder problem sorted by a guy in Worcestershire which looks too far for you. 'The_doc' on here may be able to point you in the right direction, he does knees though

[RCBRG]

ive dislocated my shoulder something like 20 times, sometimes all the way out, sometimes only partially (you lose count how many its been once its in double figures)

the operation only helped me for about 18 months, before it started happening again. its not uncommon for the shoulder to dislocate again after the operation. fortunately it never hurt too bad, and now i pop it back in and carry on with my day without really thinking about it. my shoulder feels stable day to day, but it still pops out without any warning

despite doing it so many times to one shoulder, i couldnt imagine doing both together. sounds utterly horrible!

[Justin Cyder]

A shoulder dislocation is never a simple affair. I've had north of twenty dislocations on my right shoulder & I know how god awful the pain is, so your missus has my full sympathy. I can't imagine how two simultaneously would feel.

The key thing is once you have done it once, you become highly prone to further dislocations. The shoulder is by far the freest joint in the body & so is held in place by ligaments & tendons. Dislocating it stretches them, loosening the joint in the process & so the best course is rest & physio & ultimately steering clear of activities likely to invite a repeat.

Believe it or not, a very effective method of reducing the dislocation in extremis if you absolutely have to there & then is to bend over, stand on the palm of your hand & gently straighten up until the joint pops back in. I don't recommend it but I have done this more than once, most memorably half way up a French mountain after a snowboarding mishap & it is an ersatz version of how it's done in A&E.

Did I say not recommended?

Edited by Justin Cyder on Sunday 15th September 13:13

[RCBRG]

Justin Cyder said:

Believe it or not, a very effective method of reducing the dislocation in extremis if you absolutely have to there & then is to bend over, stand on the palm of your hand & gently straighten up until the joint pops back in. I don't recommend it but I have done this more than once, most memorably half way up a French mountain after a snowboarding mishap & it is an ersatz version of how it's done in A&E.

Did I say not recommended?

Edited by Justin Cyder on Sunday 15th September 13:13

interestingly, i tend to grab a railing/lamp post/ friends hand etc, and lean back, straightening my arm out. never thought of or heard about standing on your palm!

[Justin Cyder]

I was in A&E once, full of gas & air with a nurse round my armpit & a doctor heaving on my wrist & I realised I could do that. It's all a question of getting the right angle I suppose.

[The_Doc]

Justin Cyder said:

The key thing is once you have done it once, you become highly prone to further dislocations. The shoulder is by far the freest joint in the body & so is held in place by ligaments & tendons. Dislocating it stretches them, loosening the joint in the process & so the best course is rest & physio & ultimately steering clear of activities likely to invite a repeat.

Edited by Justin Cyder on Sunday 15th September 13:13

This is the truth.

I know plenty of good shoulder guys across the M62 corridor, but none in Essex I'm afraid.
Just make sure you get referred to a shoulder specialist, not a generalist.

Some dislocations merit an early operation, some just a sling. But coming out of the sling at the right time is key.

I've had some success with these things:
http://www.physioroom.com/product/Donjoy_UltraSlin...

Will.

[evo4a]

Thanks guys, she is off to the fracture clinic tomorrow. If she isn't offered some sort of physio then we have private.

As a side note.... my life is a living hell, it's like living with a geriatric who needs constant nursing but has all their marbles to bark out a list of house chores to be done, as well as feeling like a single parent and we are only on day one.

I have a feeling she is milking it a bit but I feel incredibly guilty as I bought it as part of a birthday present.

[spikeyhead]

I dislocated mine when I slipped over playing cricket and landed awkwardly. The pain took a long time before it really hit, probably half an hour to an hour, but once it came it was very severe. Was put under to put it back in.

After that it kept coming out, but I could knock it back in without problems and it wouldn't be painful. A decent physio gave me some exercises to sort out a muscle imbalance and it's been fine since.

[BlackVanDyke]

I have a condition that makes me prone to dislocate and have done my shoulder a few times - never both at once though. No useful advice here (you've already had all the sensible stuff from these guys) just a lot of sympathy - the condition I have that makes it more likely also (I think) makes it less painful and it's still pretty horrendous.

Encourage her to use painkillers if she needs to while she rehabilitates - I don't think there's any benefit in forcing yourself to keep going when in agony but I see a lot of people trying.

[Vladimir]

Ouch!!!
A mate did both at the same time surfing big waves in Spain; stuck his arms up to touch the roof of a barrel; had both arms ripped backwards. Surgery, loads of pain, etc.

I've done mine many times but avoided surgery after physio-ing it like a man possessed.

Good luck to your other half; sounds grim.

[Pickled Piper]

The Mrs dislocated one by slipping down the stairs. From memory it was kept in a sling for about four weeks, followed by lots of Physio. A couple of years later it can get stiff if she sits at a desk too long, but a massage / Physio session plus some exercise normally sorts it out.

PP

[reggie82]

Vladimir said:

Ouch!!!
A mate did both at the same time surfing big waves in Spain; stuck his arms up to touch the roof of a barrel; had both arms ripped backwards. Surgery, loads of pain, etc.

The thing that made me shiver about that wasn't him getting his arms ripped backwards, it's being thrown into the waves with no use of his arms, sounds like it could very easily have been a lot more serious.