Buddy Wagner has been hanging drywall for 40 plus years. After years of hard work, his right shoulder finally gave out. When he first went to see Dr. Donagen he had to use his left arm to hold up his right arm, and was in a lot of constant pain. Needless to say his drywall hanging days seemed to be numbered…. or so he thought!
Dr. Donegan performed a fairly new surgical technique - Superior Capsular Reconstruction. Superior capsular reconstruction is a recently developed surgical technique for the treatment of large to massive rotator cuff tears that are not able to be repaired with standard methods. This procedure uses arthroscopic (minimally-invasive) methods to reconstruct the rotator cuff with use of donor (graft) tissue that is anchored to the attachment site of the rotator cuff. This tissue accommodates for the insufficient rotator cuff by keeping the shoulder "in balance", allowing other muscles to efficiently compensate for the rotator cuff muscles that are torn.Prior to this technique, Mr. Wagner would have needed a total shoulder replacement, which would have significantly limited his ability to do this job. Every day use would not be an issue, but hanging drywall would not be tolerated by a typical shoulder replacement. Mr. Wagner states: "After my surgery from Dr. Donegan and his wonderful staff I am now back in full force. I'm still limited on muscle strength but I can truly say that I am relatively pain free! I am extremely grateful for his help in restoring my shoulder, and getting me back to work!"
If you have any questions regarding this surgical technique, please call Bluegrass Orthopaedics at 859-263-5140.
Dr. Ryan Donegan - Shoulder and Elbow Specialist
