Conditions and Treatments

Shoulder Conditions

Instability, tendonitis, cartilage tears (labrum tears), and arthritis are common injuries in "overhead" sports such as baseball, tennis, volleyball, and swimming. They are also encountered in individuals who work in "overhead" occupations such as masonry, plumbing, and drywalling. Even though most of us consider the shoulder joint as being highly durable, it is actually a complex ball and socket joint that is susceptible to injury. For example, when the head of the humerus (the ball) and the glenoid fossa (the socket) become injured or diseased, the smooth surfaces become rough and irregular (arthritis). This causes friction, limitation of movement and, most of all, pain. The joint also relies on the rotator cuff and ligaments for motion and stability. Rotator cuff tears can occur if the tendons are overloaded following trauma or due to activities that involve heavy lifting. Instability can result from sudden trauma to the shoulder or from repetitive, typically overhead, activities.

The progress in surgical science has advanced greatly over the past few years, especially in the treatment of shoulder injuries. Shoulder injuries that were once considered permanent can today be effectively treated, often with minimally invasive surgical techniques. The shoulder surgical procedures performed by Dr. Cole treat conditions that include common problems such as rotator cuff tendonitis (impingement syndrome), rotator cuff tears, frozen shoulder (adhesive capsulitis), shoulder dislocations (shoulder instability), labral tears (SLAP tears) and complex reconstructions for arthritis including cartilage transplantation procedures and muscle or nerve damage requiring tendon transfers (long thoracic nerve injury or scapular winging).

To learn more about shoulder conditions, visit the Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush Patient Education Library.

Elbow Conditions

Elbow pain is a common complaint among many active people. The most common cause of this pain is tendonitis, which takes two forms: Tennis Elbow (lateral epicondylitis) and Golfer's Elbow (medial epicondylitis). These conditions occur when the tendons that attach the muscle to the bone become inflamed. More serious conditions involve nerve compression disorders such as Cubital Tunnel Syndrome (ulnar neuritis). With these conditions, symptoms include acute pain, numbness and weakness in the forearms and hands. Athletic injuries, especially in throwers, can involve the medial collateral ligament ("Tommy John" injury). Cartilage damage, such as capitellar (the end of the humerus) osteochondritis dissecans (bone and cartilage loss) can lead to pain and locking in the elbow and may prevent the young athlete from participating in his or her sport.

Dr. Cole's practice offers comprehensive nonoperative and operative management to effectively treat most elbow conditions afflicting the active individual. Advances in our understanding of elbow biomechanics and biology have significantly improved the outcomes following surgical intervention. For example, medial collateral ligament surgery ("Tommy John" surgery) can successfully return an athlete to a high level of function and play in the majority of instances. Surgical procedures that include the arthroscopic treatment of Tennis Elbow, the arthroscopic management of elbow stiffness, and the management of bone and cartilage loss through local treatment and transplantation now reliably reduce the symptoms associated with these problems.

To learn more about elbow conditions, visit the Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush Patient Education Library.

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