Rotator Cuff Injury

Who has suffered a rotator cuff tear and how long before you can ride again?

I tore mine 2 summers ago. I think it was about a month, maybe a little longer before I got back on the water.

Staying off the water was the easy part. Driving to work and trying to shift gears with my right arm in a shoulder emobilizer for a couple weeks was a treat!

How did you do it ?

Tore it bad and was out for a 3 months

I tore mine while attempting a backroll but came up short on the rotation and plowed my right shoulder into the wake. I was out for a month.

I tore mine in December and did 8.5 weeks of physical therapy and was lifting weights again at the end of February. Snow skiing in March and on the water at the end of March. To date the shoulder is better than it has been in a long time.

There are two ways to fix a tear. One with the scope and one with the knife. I had the scope and knife on one and just the scope on the other. So I consider myself an expert on the subject - unfortunately.

The knife fix takes a while. You'll be in an immobilizing sling for 6-8 weeks, then in therapy for 6-10 weeks. I wouldn't even dream of getting behind a boat any earlier than 3 months from your surgery date.

If it's just a scope fix everything is much simpler. Everything above is shorter and you could plan on being on the water in 6 weeks or so.

Like bbeach said, if you do things right and follow the therapy schedule, your shoulder will be strong and solid. If you don't and rush things - well - My Dr. told me that "if you liked the first procedure, you're going to love the second one".

Rotator Cuff injuries are a real pain in the the rear. They are more painful and slower healing than hips and knees due to a myraiad of physiological reasons (muscles, nerves, tendons, etc.)

To the best of my knowledge, I haven't torn my rotator cuff, but sometimes wish I had so I could get my shoulder fixed for good. I've had my shoulder dislocated at least 12 times and is gets knocked out really easy. One time I was leaning against a wall with my arm extended out to hold me up and sneezed. That knocked it out. While riding I have only knocked it out once, that was in January this year. It plays with my head on every edge to the wake. Every crash I pull my elbows in as soon as the rope slips from my hands to protect myself. Just wish my shoulder was like new so I could go big and not have to think about it.

Hurt mine wrestling a while back and it still hurts a little if I wakeboard for too long. Can't sleep on that side too much either. Besides that it doesn't bother me much, never got medical attention for it but it took about a month for it to heal on it's own. Probably didn't tear, but it hurt like a bitch, couldn't shift gears or hold my arm on the steering wheel either. Now, if I flex whatever muscle it is that's on the top of your shoulder, it pops out of its socket a little, nice party trick though.

The first time I dislocated my shoulder was wrestling during my Jr. year of high school, and I ended up tearing the labrum, which is the cartlidge-like connective tissue surrounding the entire shoulder joint. After that, I kept dislocating it doing a bunch of things: swimming, wakeboarding and even once when I rolled over in my sleep. I ended up having reconstructive surgery last August, and had to accept the fact that I wouldn't be riding until this spring. The earliest I got out on the water was March, and everying is still holding together after many hours of physical therapy and waiting for my shoulder to heal.

My rotator cuff didn't tear, but it was stretched beyond recognition. I've had both of my shoulders torn out by horses. Since I didn't tear them, my doctor's opted to not do surgery. This was the exact chance my shoulders needed to heal back incorrectly. I now have impingement in both of my shoulders that causes my fingers to lose feeling. Especially after wakeboarding. I have also had the ends of both of my collar bones cut off and the ligaments shaved down. I wish I would have just torn it. Seems like it would have been alot simpler.