On August 18th, 2014 I went to see Dr. Brandon Earp at Brigham and Women’s. She specializes in hand, elbow and shoulder injuries and had operated on my friend Brian’s hand. I was fortunate enough to get an appoint the first day I was back from vacation.
At this point I really wanted to know what the process is for getting my shoulder healed and returning to normal life. Normal life for me that is.
I went in early to get more X-Rays taken. This time they took them in for different directions. One from behind, I was actually facing the floor and the X-Ray machine was facing down. Another from the front and two more from the front but at different angles.
Kelly met me just as I was going into see the Dr. I’m not really sure what I was expecting to hear because I hadn’t done a lot of research on the internet, mostly because you just don’t know what you are going to see out here and what you can trust. In my mind I was prepared to have surgery if necessary and get on with the healing process.
Dr. Earp came in and took a look at the X-Rays and did a quick exam to see what kind of strength I had and range of motion. When she was done she said that she recommended no surgery at this time and to let it heal. She immediately could see that I was skeptical and went on to explain that the majority of Grade 3 separations are allowed to heal without surgery. They only issue is the bump where the Clavicle is now sticking up. That never goes away.
She said there was no difference between having the surgery now and waiting to have the surgery a year from now. I was still pretty skeptical because I just could not understand how my shoulder is going to function properly if all the pieces are not in their proper place. Again she explained how the scar tissue would form where the old ligaments had been and I would be able to build strength and range of motion through Physical Therapy. She said that I could probably run and bike if it wasn’t too painful, but should probably hold off on the swimming.
She wrote me a prescription for PT and had me schedule a followup with her in 4 to 6 weeks. My follow up appointment with Dr. Earp will be at the end of September. After I left I still had so many questions that I just didn’t think of when I was sitting there.
The biggest question I had wished I asked was, “What if I was Tom Brady?, would you be recommending surgery or just PT?” That is really the question I wish I had asked. What would you tell someone who depends on their throwing arm for making a living?