I've been having shoulder pain for and the doctor thinks it is due to a torn labrum. He ordered an arthogram MRI with contrast. Anyone had this done or know what I can expect? Seems like its gonna be pretty painful

Been there, the procedure is very minor. A little injection and the MRI.

I did not have the tear operated on. I did have the adhesive capsulitis that resulted from the tear operated on (diabetic, so frozen shoulder is much more common).

Dealt with a torn labrum for most of my adult life. Finally in Jan of last year it got to the point that the cortisone shots didn't work and I had surgery. Don't remember the mris being anything special or painful. Surgery was very painful and a long recovery and pt. But totally worth it and not as bed overall as I feared it would be.

An arthrogram doesnt tease out a labral tear much better than a standard mri. But it isnt a big deal.

Both mine are torn and the people that I know that have had repairs said it is very painful with a long recovery. I have been able to suck it up enough but be nice to be pain free doing everyday movements

I wish I had a labrum...

Just my experiences with MRIs, I have had a couple where I was in tears with so much pain after an MRI. They have to set the arm in a postition to get the best imaging. And that position can be very painful. The two MRI's I had on my knee wasn't an issue, but two out of three I have had on my shoulder/arms have been very painful.

I'm a big guy, though. They couldn't do much with pillows and pads to get me comfortable. You just have to suck it up and get through it.

So my labrum was torn pretty much all around. Also had minor (not really sure what is defined as minor) rotator tear and minor biceps tendon tear. It finally got to the point that I couldn't sleep, let alone do stuff.

I would honestly recommend having the surgery once it is bad and really affecting life. Yes, it hurt, but I had plenty of pain pills. First two weeks were pretty bad. Had planned to take two weeks off and do nothing the first week then do office stuff the second. Ended up doing nothing for the full two due to the general pain and the fact that having the arm up at desk height was uncomfortable and I just didn't feel like doing much. Lots of people struggle with sleeping, for whatever reason, I got lucky and didn't have a problem with it. Kind of built a nest type setup on the couch and just slept there for the first two weeks.

Started doing Inspections again the third and fourth weeks. Just one a day with a helper. Would still take pain pills in the evening and at night pretty regularly.

After a month it was pretty good and mainly the stretching pain during pt. Could wear the sling situational ly and leave it off at home. They still limited activity and any strength work until 12 weeks. But I could do way more little things than I expected and range of motion came back really well for me. I think staying out of the sling at home and using the arm within the rules helped things.

By the time I was allowed to do strength work at 12 weeks, I was ready for it and generally felt pretty good with very little pain. You do really have to do the pt for the stretching they do. Was never fun, but I think it was the most important part.

Really glad I took the leap and had it fixed.

I hurt my shoulder 2 years ago, did the MRI with contrast, it wasn't a big deal. For some reason I couldn't stop laughing when they injected the contrast because it just felt so strange.

Mine was a minor tear, never worked on, I just do a rehab program most days that involves stretches and band pulls. I stopped lifting weight for about two months after I hurt it, but I got back to full strength pretty quickly and I'm back to lifting heavy again. It still bothers me if I lay on it too long, or randomly rotate it a strange way and it just goes dead for a minute or so, but not much pain anymore.

Tore my labrum in 2017 and partially torn rotator cuff. Chose not to have surgery and instead got into a routine of rubber bands, stretching, and weights; oddly enough recommended by a chiropractor. I was able to make significant strides in healing and strengthening my shoulder. I am at 80-90% usage which for me at my current point in life is good enough.

Have slap tears and rotator cuff issues in both shoulders. Elected to not have surgery and just live with pain and limitations.

Started to develop frozen shoulder in the left shoulder. Also, diabetic. Mainly did pt, to work on getting range of motion. But the biggest improvement was getting my glucose levels down and better managing diabetes. Definite big change within 3 months or so, after start mounjaro and better eating.

Everything is patient specific, so I am just sharing what worked for me.

I had a torn labrum and rotator cuff, and had a bicep tendon issue. I tried rehab but building loss of sleep because of pain pushed me to get surgery.

Most guys that have shoulder surgery are in slings for a long time. I was out of my sling in 2 weeks, got to rehab quickly and was back in the gym beginning to lightly lift about 8 or 10 weeks after surgery. I don't really remember the specific time frame but it was close to that.

My surgeon said a bovine patch was the superior solution that was very strong and would have me on the road to recovery quickly. 3 years post surgery, I am 100% - lifting heavy and very active. I am actually pretty shocked how well it worked.

Look into this patch.

My experience with an arthrogram MRI on my shoulder was very different than others that have posted here, so I figured I would share a different perspective.

Maybe the person injecting the dye was new, but it was very painful. They went through the front of my shoulder and the needle got stuck as it was going in. The person decided to wrap her hand around the barrel of the needle and proceed to smack the forearm of the hand holding the needle with the free hand. The needle finally got into the joint after 5 or 6 smacks. I was in a lot of pain after that MRI.

I had a torn labrum and a condition called synovial osteochondromatosis and decided to have surgery, which involved a biceps tenodesis. Recovery sucks, but I was out of a sling after 3 or 4 weeks and able to resume daily activities pretty soon thereafter. PT can be painful at first, but taking it seriously and doing the exercises are key to long term success. I'm VERY happy I had the surgery done.

TexAg2001 said:

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My experience with an arthrogram MRI on my shoulder was very different than others that have posted here, so I figured I would share a different perspective.

Maybe the person injecting the dye was new, but it was very painful. They went through the front of my shoulder and the needle got stuck as it was going in. The person decided to wrap her hand around the barrel of the needle and proceed to smack the forearm of the hand holding the needle with the free hand. The needle finally got into the joint after 5 or 6 smacks. I was in a lot of pain after that MRI.

I had a torn labrum and a condition called synovial osteochondromatosis and decided to have surgery, which involved a biceps tenodesis. Recovery sucks, but I was out of a sling after 3 or 4 weeks and able to resume daily activities pretty soon thereafter. PT can be painful at first, but taking it seriously and doing the exercises are key to long term success. I'm VERY happy I had the surgery done.

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I had too had an MRI issue once similar to this. It felt like the person had separated my shoulder and i was in tremendous pain for a day or 2.

aggie4231 said:

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Have slap tears and rotator cuff issues in both shoulders. Elected to not have surgery and just live with pain and limitations.

Started to develop frozen shoulder in the left shoulder. Also, diabetic. Mainly did pt, to work on getting range of motion. But the biggest improvement was getting my glucose levels down and better managing diabetes. Definite big change within 3 months or so, after start mounjaro and better eating.

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Blood sugar was always good. I tried 6 months of PT and kept loosing range. Finally had the ligaments severed and the relief was instant. I later developed it in my other shoulder. That cleared without surgery.