If you had rotator cuff surgery or other ligament or labral surgery, you need to be careful with your shoulder. Ask the surgeon what arm movements are safe to do.

Most fractures of the proximal humerus can be treated without surgery if the bone fragments are not severely out of position (displaced). If surgery is necessary, it usually involves: There will be some pain and discomfort after your surgery. You should take painkillers as prescribed, do not wait for your pain to worsen prior to taking pain relief. Ensure your sling is in correct position; your arm should rest in it across your stomach with your elbow at 90 degrees. Your arm should feel fully supported by the sling. If you’ve ever had a serious shoulder injury, you’re well aware of how sensitive the healing process can be. You might not realize it until you’ve had pain in that area, but the shoulders are responsible for a tremendous amount of your upper body coordination, and any injury to that part of the body can be extremely painful, whether you’re inadvertently moving the shoulder itself or just sitting around breathing.You will go home from the ward with a dressing over your wound. The nursing staff will give you dressings to use at home and tell you about when and where to get your stitches out. This is usually about ten days after your surgery. You have the right to help plan your care. Learn about your health condition and how it may be treated. Discuss treatment options with your healthcare providers to decide what care you want to receive. You always have the right to refuse treatment. The above information is an educational aid only. It is not intended as medical advice for individual conditions or treatments. Talk to your doctor, nurse or pharmacist before following any medical regimen to see if it is safe and effective for you. After that you will do exercises the therapist teaches you at home. These will help increase the strength in your shoulder and the muscles around your shoulder. Most fractures of the scapula can be treated without surgery. Treatment involves immobilization with a sling or shoulder immobilizer, icing, and pain medications. The patient will be examined for additional injuries. When recovering from an injury or surgery, it is typically best to use your sling or immobilizer the majority of the day and night. However, the immobilizer does come off to get dressed, take a shower, and perform physical therapy exercises. In addition, whenever sitting in a nice chair or couch, it is perfectly reasonable to remove the immobilizer completely and let the forearm rest on your lap. On the contrary, when being active, especially outside, or when going to sleep, the shoulder immobilizer provides protection and should be used. The shoulder immobilizer also functions a sign to others: if you attend a family reunion or a gathering of friends with your immobilizer on, people will be more careful around you! Most common mistakes when using a shoulder sling or immobilizer

Once you’ve decided on a style, you’ll want to investigate the material quality and breathability of a given model. If you have any sensitivity to certain fabrics, make sure that the option you’ve got your eye on doesn’t contain any of them. Certain materials will breathe better than others, as well, and you might find an immobilizer particularly uncomfortable in a humid climate if it doesn’t breathe well. Options like the DonJoy UltraSling IV, Flexguard Support Arm Sling, Ortho Depot Abduction Sling, Wonder Care Stabilizer, BraceAbility Pediatric 10S0101, and Velpeau Rotator Cuff Support are going to offer the highest level of stability for various reasons. For example, the Flexguard Support Arm Sling and Velpeau Rotator Cuff Support both have a large band that wraps around your arm and your mid-section, so the limb cannot move in any direction. Once you are allowed a little more movement, but still need support, you can simply forego the use of the band. The DonJoy UltraSling IV and Ortho Depot Abduction Sling also have a strap that goes around the mid-section, but it clips to the brace rather than enveloping your entire upper arm. They also hold your limb at a slight abduction, which not only do many find more comfortable, but has been shown to improve healing for various ailments. Additionally, they both have integrated therapy balls. The Wonder Care Stabilizer is interesting in that it has a minimalist design while still providing almost total immobilization. It secures to the arm at the wrist and just above the elbow and holds it tightly against the body.

Self-care

You may also be told not to use your arm or hand on the side that had surgery. For example, do not:

The evidence of that development comes to us in the form of an ancient document from Egypt. The Edwin Smith Papyrus — named for the man who discovered it, not for an ancient Egyptian with a suspiciously Anglican name — is a long medical text that exemplifies the impressive amount of anatomical knowledge that the Egyptians had amassed. It is normal to have some swelling/ bruising around your shoulder and down your arm or chest. Often this is worse following trauma or more complicated surgeries. Bruising can be more common if you are medication to thin your blood. You can reduce swelling in your hand and elbow by ensuring you complete the exercises provided and ensuring your sling is applied correctly. If your sling is too loose your arm will hang downwards allowing swelling to gather in your fingers and hand.A shoulder immobilizer is a device used to keep your arm from moving while your shoulder heals. It is different from a sling because it keeps your arm close to your body. An immobilizer usually has a chest band, an arm band, and a wrist band. Each band will be attached to the chest band. This helps keep your arm from moving up, down, or away from your body. The physiotherapist will have shown you how to remove and apply your sling on the ward but below is a link if you need some assistance. We advise you to sleep in any comfortable position. However, sleeping on your operated shoulder will probably increase your pain. Your sling will need to remain on during the night. Surgery involves realignment of the bones and fixation of the fracture fragments with plates and screws. Shoulder Separations (Acromioclavicular Joint) Arm slings can be found in various settings, including hospitals, orthopedic clinics, physical therapy centers, and sports medicine facilities. They are also commonly used at home during the recovery process, as prescribed by a healthcare professional.