Comfort purrs please?

In article , Irulan
wrote:

I was diagnosed with a torn rotator cuff this morning, ouch
I got a cortisone shot which hurt like the dickens and hasn't helped any.
Does anybody know when this is supposed to kick in if it helps at all? And
then I have to go for physical therapy for 4 weeks, twice a week. I have
been gulping Advil and Aleve all day, plus the Relafen which is an
antiinflammatory. I hope I won't need surgery.
I am miserable.
Lily's mama, Lydia

I had a mild to moderate rotator cuff injury, which went out in the
very start -- not the stress part -- of a weightlifting movement.

Don't take Advil, Aleve, and Relafen together. They are all of the same
general chemical family, and raising the dose both increases the chance
of side effects but doesn't improve pain control. Yes, they are
appropriate as inflammatories, but if they don't control the pain, you
probably need an oral opioid, or at least tramadol.

It's hard to say how long it will take for the shot to take effect.
Obviously, it wasn't mixed with a local anesthetic as they often are.
I'd guess that you should see results, if you are going to see them, in
a day or two, but that will be over time.

My physical therapy ran 2-3 times a week for about, IIRC, 3 months, and
I have a permanent routine of rotator cuff strengthening exercises,
which are not difficult or strenuous. The physical therapist did use
heat and electrical stimulation, which helped a lot. Since I already
had a TENS electrical stimulator, I used that a good deal as well.

I'm afraid your doctor is not giving me a warm, comfortable feeling, as
I would question the use of injected corticosteroids for other than a
quite narrow area such as a tendon or joint.

Purrs, and applications of lightweight warm cats.

In article , Irulan
wrote:

Lots of purrs. Did you get good drugs? ;-)

Dang, no. Because of my diabetes (nerve endings are shot), I can't take
anything stronger than Advil or Aleve or I start upchucking.
Heh.
Lily's mama

By stronger, I assume you mean oral opioids like Vicodin or Percocet. A
couple of alternatives might be tramadol (Ultram) or ketorolac
(Toradol). Also, opioids can be given with anti-nausea drugs.

Thanks for the advice, Howard. I read up on Tramadol (Ultram) and don't like
what I read. I'm happy with Advil and Aleve, which I don't take that often
anyway. The Relafen is only once a day and the analgesics is taken over 6
hours in between PRN. I think I'll just stick with them. The pain has eased
a bit but is still there. I wish I could have started the physical therapy
sooner but they can't get to me until the 28th. Oh well,
Lily's mama

--

Irulan
from the stars we come
to the stars we return
from now until the end of time
"Howard C. Berkowitz" wrote in message
...
In article , Irulan
wrote:

Lots of purrs. Did you get good drugs? ;-)

Dang, no. Because of my diabetes (nerve endings are shot), I can't take
anything stronger than Advil or Aleve or I start upchucking.
Heh.
Lily's mama

By stronger, I assume you mean oral opioids like Vicodin or Percocet. A
couple of alternatives might be tramadol (Ultram) or ketorolac
(Toradol). Also, opioids can be given with anti-nausea drugs.

Don't take Advil, Aleve, and Relafen together. They are all of the same
general chemical family, and raising the dose both increases the chance
of side effects but doesn't improve pain control. Yes, they are
appropriate as inflammatories, but if they don't control the pain, you
probably need an oral opioid, or at least tramadol.

Taking Advil and Aleve (ibuprofen and naproxen) can cause kidney
failure. That's what I heard. You can, however, alternate taking
ibuprofen and Tylenol every 2 hours, for long-term pain control.

Jane