Shoulder fracture treatment: surgery vs sling
Shoulder fractures can be particularly painful, limiting movement within the arm. Depending upon the severity of the fracture, surgery tends to be the most common shoulder fracture treatment option. However, could wearing a sling be just as effective? Here, we’ll look at surgery for shoulder fractures versus wearing a sling. Study reveals slings just as effective at treating fractures A recent study carried out by the Aarhus University in Denmark, has revealed that slings are just as effective at healing shoulder fractures as surgery. Together with departments from Sweden, Finland and Estonia, the researchers studied 88 patients with shoulder fractures over the age of 60. The patients were followed for two years, with half receiving surgical treatment and the other half given a sling during recovery. The results showed no difference in improvement between the sling and the surgical groups. The patients who underwent shoulder surgery didn’t experience any less pain or improvement in movement than those who wore a sling. This shows that surgical treatment is unnecessary in the case of bone displacement fractures. As it doesn’t provide any improvements compared to
wearing a sling, the study highlights that surgery shouldn’t be the first course of action when treating fractures. When might shoulder surgery be needed? While the majority of shoulder fractures could heal just as well in a sling, there are exceptions where surgery may be required. If the rotator cuff is damaged during the trauma to the shoulder, surgery may be the best option. This is because rotator cuff tears, in particular, don’t tend to heal by themselves. It does depend upon the severity of the tear, but usually, patients do require surgery to fix it. Content Source