Heya T-freques. Problem: I injured the area around my bicep and shoulder when doing incline bench presses nearly a year ago. As I was pressing my arm slipped out and the weight fell back, pulling my arm with it. Usually there is no pain, but every so often when I hit that region it starts killing me. I haven’t had it looked at yet. What kind of specialist do you guys feel is most qualified for this type of situation? Thanks.
"MB Eric: WOrks out so he can hear here taller people say that he's huge since 1112."
Eric - I would go to an orthopedic surgeon to start with. Let him x-ray, etc, and tell you what to do. From this he can tell you if you have torn something, sprained something, etc., and suggest physical therapy, or surgery (although if he automatically suggests surgery, I would get a second opinion). I have shoulder problems and am currently trying to rehab my shoulder. It seems to be working, but is slow going. Take it easy and let us know how it goes.
What do you mean that your “arm slipped out”? Did the shoulder dislocate? If so, the same thing happened to me on incline dumbell press last christmas. After that, I had repeated subluxations of the joint and had to have a thermal capsular shift arthroscopy done. Its still not 100%, maybe 80% or so. In addition to having the ligaments stretched way out, my injury also included having a piece of the periosteum ( bone covering) torn off the humeral head. It only bothers me when I am in the top position of the bench press, for that is when that part of the humeral head makes contact with the glenoid fossa. I would definitely suggest you seek out the best sports medicine/orthopedic physician you can find, specifically one who works with contact sport athletes a great deal ( NFL, NHL, College football, etc). You don’t want just any surgeon performing surgery on your shoulder capsule; its the trickiest joint to work on.
Thanks for the input guys. What happened was during the concentric portion of the movement I began to “give out” (too much weight" and the weight fell back, I tried to “catch it” by turning my arm but the force of the weight pulled it back. I have NO problem benching. Pain arises when I do shoulder presses or movements that stress that area. Again, it is not constant. It just seems to get agrrivated every so often which is too often for me.
"MB Eric: Puts fear i nthe eyes of the Bull in the china shop since 1779."
Well then, it sounds as though your injury ( pain only in the position of injury) is indicative of a structural injury, not a musclular one. This injury is old, and DEFINITELY needs to be evaluated by a qualified sports medicine physician. Find one who works with contact athletes in your area. If you live in or near a large city, phone the NFL or Division 1-A program and ask who their sports medicine/orthopedist is. He will almost definitely order an MR on your shoulder in order to pinpoint the problem.You definitely want the best physician possible to evaluate your shoulder joint. Shoulder surgery is very delicate and you want someone who can relate to your type injury and who’s seen many of these cases before. Good luck!