Patient Education

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These files are provided with permission from: (www.utahshoulderknee.com).

Achilles Tendon Exercises

Carpal Tunnel Exercises

IT Band Exercises

Rotator Cuff Post Op Rehab

Rotator Cuff Non-Op Rehab

Hyaluronan Brochure

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Carpal tunnel syndrome is a progressively painful hand and arm condition caused by a pinched nerve in your wrist. Fortunately, for most people who develop carpal tunnel syndrome, proper treatment usually can relieve the pain and numbness and restore normal use of their wrists and hands.

Femoroacetabular Impingement

Femoroacetabular Impingement, or FAI, is a condition where the ball (femoral head) and socket (acetabulum) of the hip joint come together in an abnormal fashion. As the name implies, the two bones impinge or abut to create increased friction within the hip joint.

Patella (Knee Cap) Instability

This is a common problem, particularly in young people under 20 years of age. There are many associated factors that can put a patient at greater risk for a patella dislocation. A patellar dislocation can occur sometimes with a simple slip or twisting of the leg. Many times, the patella will spontaneously reduce back into its normal position, but there are chances that it might not.

Cartilage Injuries

Injuries or disease of the cartilage that cause irregularities or roughening can begin to cause trouble in the joint such as swelling, pain, catching, and other symptoms. When treatment of articular cartilage injury is considered it is important that the patient understand that most treatments are aimed at focal loss of cartilage in an otherwise reasonably normal knee.

Meniscus Tear

The meniscus can be injured with an acute (sudden) twist or injury of the knee. Sometimes this is associated with an injury to one of the ligaments at the same time. Other times it can be a more simple injury such as just being in a squatted position and twisting the knee or moving to stand up.

Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL)

The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) connects the femur (thigh bone) to the tibia (shin bone) in the middle of the knee. In an ACL tear, typically a patient will feel or hear a pop, swelling will occur in the next few hours, and in most circumstances the patient will be unable to continue playing the original sport or activity.

Shoulder Instability

Typical cases of shoulder instability occur after injury and a forceful shoulder dislocation where the humeral head “ball” of the shoulder is forced out of contact with the glenoid “socket”. Many times these dislocations require a patient to go to an emergency room to get the shoulder put back into place.

AC separation (Acromio-Clavicular Joint – AC Joint)

A shoulder separation occurs typically with a fall onto the tip of the shoulder. This is typical of a mountain bike fall or a football game where someone is tackled and lands on the tip of the shoulder. The patient typically will have some sort of pop or give in the shoulder, has pain, and a noticeable deformity of the shoulder.

Impingement Syndrome

A common source for shoulder pain is a condition called impingement syndrome. This is sometimes referred to as “bursitis” by patient. It is felt that the function of the rotator cuff is somewhat compromised due to fatigue, weakness, partial tearing, etc. Due to this problem, the humeral head (ball) of the shoulder does not stay completely centered in the glenoid (socket).

Biceps Tendon Rupture

A common problem is a rupture of the long head of the biceps tendon. The most common setting for biceps rupture is with the patient over the age of 40 who has had some level of prior shoulder problems. The rupture can occur with what seems like trivial trauma, although it can also occur with a forceful use of the arm.

Rotator Cuff

The rotator cuff is made up of 4 muscles and their tendons that run from the scapula (shoulder blade) out to the proximal humerus (upper arm). It helps keep the shoulder centered during movement. The rotator cuff can help elevate and rotate the shoulder on its own, but it would be much weaker than what is allowed when the other large muscles play a role.

Rotator cuff arthropathy

This is a condition where a patient has a large rotator cuff tear and poor rotator cuff function that allows the humeral head (ball) to not be held centered in the socket and to progressively move higher in the joint. As the humeral head (ball) moves higher in the shoulder the patient frequently has inability to lift the arm and motion progressively deteriorates.

Frozen Shoulder

A frozen shoulder (also sometimes called adhesive capsulitis) is a condition where the capsular structures (ligaments) of the shoulder have shortened and scarred and this decreases the motion of the shoulder. Frozen shoulder most commonly occurs without an obvious cause. It can be seen after injuries where shoulder motion is not allowed or pain restricts motion for a period of time.