“My rotator cuff was pretty much shot.”

“I’ve suffered many injuries to my right shoulder over the years, starting with gymnastics in high school, golf, tennis, skiing, walking into walls, whatever,” says Wisconsin-born, Southern California-raised Rita S., 69, a retired office worker who has lived in the desert with her retired dentist husband, Hank, since 1995. “Because I’ve learned to do many things left-handed, it really wasn’t disastrous for me.” But in the latter part of 2017, Rita’s shoulder pain had gotten so severe that she sought professional help. “My rotator cuff was pretty much shot,” she continues. “They couldn’t do anything arthroscopically. Apparently, they couldn’t even do a regular shoulder replacement.”

Reverse shoulder replacement to the rescue

Rita was therefore scheduled for a reverse shoulder replacement, a procedure developed in Europe in the 1980s whose use in the United States was FDA-approved in late 2003.

“Until 2004, we didn’t have any options for shoulder replacements that were going to give good, functional results in patients that did not have a strong, functional rotator cuff,” says Orthopedic Surgeon David Savin, MD, of the procedure.”

“A conventional shoulder replacement device mimics the normal anatomy of the shoulder,” continues Dr. Savin. “This type of surgery, however, is not as beneficial for patients with large rotator cuff tears who have developed a degenerative type of shoulder arthritis called cuff tear arthropathy. For these patients…a reverse total shoulder replacement is a better and more predictable option. Proper patient selection, pre-operative planning and execution of the surgical plan can help maximize patient outcomes.”

“The pain is virtually gone.”

With Rita’s surgery having been completed without complications, Dr. Savin was not surprised by her speedy recuperation. “Everything went very well, and her recovery has been phenomenal,” he says. “Preserved preoperative range of motion will help predict better postoperative motion. The fact that she had excellent motion before surgery enhanced her recovery quite a bit.”

“I did have great range of motion because I’m very flexible,” says Rita. “So in truth, I was really hesitant the last couple of weeks before the surgery, thinking, ‘I’m functioning. Should I do this?’ But I’m so glad I did. It’s been eight weeks since my surgery, and the pain is virtually gone. I do exercises at home three to five times a day and I see improvement daily.”

GREAT NEWS!

U.S. News & World Report has released its prestigious annual hospital rankings. Eisenhower Health ranks #1 in the Inland Empire and #12 in California. Eisenhower Health was also rated High Performing in 20 types of care — the highest number of specialty recognitions earned by a hospital in the Inland Empire, including these five in Orthopedics: Hip Replacement, Knee Replacement, Hip Fracture, Back Surgery and Orthopedics overall.

More Accreditations & Recognition