broken clavicle...surgery or not?

[lets see em]

Hello all just wanted to give an update.....so i broke my clavicle april 27 2012 doctor wanted to see if it heal on its own it didnt had surgery july 27 2012 so its been just over 4 months doctor told me iam healed and i can pretty much do anything but he said dont fall on it lol ive been going to the gym for the last 3 weeks about 4 times a week i cant really do chest workouts because it feels really weird i can do the 35s and before i got injured i could do the 90s arms i can do without anypain same does with back and legs shoulders are like chest but not as bad.....the clavicle gets sore almost everyday not extreme pain but it bugs me.....so is anyone here more then 4 months post opp and working out more then me iam just trying to gauge where i am also iam 25 years old

 

[willy81]

What do you mean 35s and 90s, is it Kg or lbs?

I got the surgery July 3rd, beginning of September I could lift 12Kg dumbbells, now I can lift 15kg but I don't push it too much.
My standard workout is 20Kg barbell. I have no pain but the pleasant feel that my muscles get stronger
with the surgery healing is faster and correct

your problems is not the muscles but the bone, if it does not heal correctly muscles will always give problems

 

[Clara M]

Hi,
I wanted to ask you guys if there is anyone who had clavicle surgery and had the plates or screws removed after a while, and how does it feel? I mean is it like before you had your accident or is there a considerable change?

thanks!
wish you all a fast recovery!

 

[bsbs1876]

Originally Posted by Clara M .

Hi,
I wanted to ask you guys if there is anyone who had clavicle surgery and had the plates or screws removed after a while, and how does it feel? I mean is it like before you had your accident or is there a considerable change?

thanks!
wish you all a fast recovery!

Hi Clara,

I can't speak from experience but one thing I do know is that once you break a bone it is never really the same. The holes from the screws will take time to fill back in and then it will be solid and feel good again but it will never be the way it was before you broke it. That is just a reality we all have no choice but to face. The idea is to aim for the best possible outcome and become fully functional again. Asking for it to be as if nothing ever happened are some high hopes if you ask me.

Look at it this way, we should all consider ourselves lucky! It could have been our neck/back and we could be paralyzed for life. You will be back to normal again soon and doing the things you love to do. Don't worry!

B

 

[willy81]

there was a guy here around July and he said that he feels 1000% the same as before,
and this is what my doctor said to me too.

I know a kickboxer who broke his leg and after the required time he was back

 

[lets see em]

pounds 35 pounds and 90 pounds sorry

 

[Clara M]

Hei,
Yeah I know that it won't be like before that's for sure.
Fact is I cracked the same clavicle 10 years ago, the same kind of accident and I just ended up staying three weeks at home and after that everything was normal again except for the fact that I felt a light pain sensation when I did exercises for the back and shoulders.
I imagine that this time it will be more pain and clearly it will never be like before.
And yes, the only thing that makes me feel not that sad is that I know it could have been much much worse!

 

[bsbs1876]

Originally Posted by Clara M .

Hei,
Yeah I know that it won't be like before that's for sure.
Fact is I cracked the same clavicle 10 years ago, the same kind of accident and I just ended up staying three weeks at home and after that everything was normal again except for the fact that I felt a light pain sensation when I did exercises for the back and shoulders.
I imagine that this time it will be more pain and clearly it will never be like before.
And yes, the only thing that makes me feel not that sad is that I know it could have been much much worse!

Judging by your x-ray this break is a lot worse than before. It is the broken piece closest to your sternum that would concern me the most. The other part looks as though it could heal naturally but if you leave everything to heal that way then you will have the bone sticking up forever like that. That is kind of like my case right now but the bone isn't close to my sternum it is more in the middle.

 

[Clara M]

So you are going in for surgery in the near future you said? I am curious if this isn't a little more complicated now than it would have been before...I was told that surgery has to be done in the first days after the accident because once the bone starts to heal it's rather complicated.
Now I am afraid that with my 2 months I have waited too much, but on the other hand there are people who haven't had surgery for years.
How do you feel about it?...because you told us that it's been 3 years for you now?

 

[bsbs1876]

Originally Posted by Clara M .

So you are going in for surgery in the near future you said? I am curious if this isn't a little more complicated now than it would have been before...I was told that surgery has to be done in the first days after the accident because once the bone starts to heal it's rather complicated.
Now I am afraid that with my 2 months I have waited too much, but on the other hand there are people who haven't had surgery for years.
How do you feel about it?...because you told us that it's been 3 years for you now?

There are studies online that show delayed fixation provides just as good results as early fixation. The doctor has to saw through the fracture site, clean it up and then line the bones up properly with hardware. Bone graft is usually not required because there is a lot of bone to work with in the area.

The only real complication that would come of this is the fact that the muscles have trained themselves around the new location of the bone. Once the bone is put back in place the muscle memory has to start over again and basically push back into proper place. I could see this being quite painful/uncomfortable for some time but worth it in the long run for sure. My doctor assures me that fixing it later is still not a problem and for young individuals like myself it is probably a good idea to minimize/avoid arthritis, back and joint problems later on in life.

 

[bbninja]

Originally Posted by Clara M .

Hi! and thanks not only to you but all of the people answering to my post!
I will actually go and see this doctor in Hungary and see what he says and if he tells me that I need surgery if I ever want to have 100 % of my shoulder back then I will have it, but surely not in Romania. I will ask for a detailed description for the procedure he thinks best for me and then I will research more and I will make up my mind, but can you guys tell me from your own experience what is better, plate? screws? I mean can you actually feel them under the skin? isn't it weird? and for how long do you have to keep them in? because my fracture is kind of healed and they probably have to break it again and remodel it...that means more time with a plate inside your body right? Just some details if you care to share! thanks a lot!
this has been already very useful!

Its been a year and a half since i broke mine and had basically immediate surgury. As of today and for about a year now i have full movement and besides the feeling and the look my body feels the same, i have zero issues with movement or rubbing of bones. I have a plate with 6 screws, you can feel it under my skin but its hard to see unless you are looking for it, mostly you just see a scar there. It was wierd at first but like everything after awhile you just accept it being there. THey will take it out after a year i was told but i am really skinny and tehy want to leave mine in so i am probably going to die with this inside my body. When i am old, it may be a pain i dont know taht will be 25 + years from now. I am a shipper/receiver and lift boxes all day long, heavy ones at times and no issues. 100 percent back to normal. I couldnt imagine not having the surgury.

 

[willy81]

bbninja,
how does it feel in contact sports, do you feel safe enough?

 

[Clara M]

Yeah good question, even though I didn't venture thinking of sports yet because I am only using my arm to lift glasses or plates with food now...no surgery yet so I am just doing my PT, that is my light PT.
I used to throw a football pretty far , I was let's say good at many sports but now all I think of is that I won't be able to throw a ball 2 m in front of me.
That makes me feel really sad all the time. That's the worst thing about this whole broken clavicle story, not the lump, not the pain...

 

[willy81]

go have the surgery, girl! don't waste your time with wishful thinking, your bones will never realign with out the surgery, they can heal but not correctly, you are not going to be a handicapped person even without the surgery but you will not be the same either, looking to your xrays I can see your spine is not straight up as it should be and your right shoulder is shorter than before because your clavicle has become shorter due to the overlap.

today I had a basketball session with friends, the most of the time I was careful and I didn't have a major impact but I didn't care people coming close to me and play defense against me

 

[qdc15]

...

 

[bbninja]

Originally Posted by willy81 .

bbninja,
how does it feel in contact sports, do you feel safe enough?

Unfortunatly i do not play hockey no more so i cannot say for sure but i do think i would be a little worried about taking a check into the boards and crushing my shoulder into me. I watch football players come back from the injury in like 6 weeks and play full contact/ Personally i would be worried about taking a full on shot to the bone but it is what it is. Any full direct shot to it will break it but i think you can say the same thing before it broke in the first place.

So in regards to the question, i do not feel it is as good as it was originally, let say a 100 percent shot broke it originally, now i think 85 percent of the same force can break it now where as if was perfect 85 percent would not have broken it, if you get what i am saying. Bottom line though is you need to have plate removed before going back to sports, if it breaks with the plate i hear it can be a nasty operation, so personally since mine is still in there i kinda make sure if i ever go flying threw the air again anytime soon i will be landing a different way that is for sure, but it was better than sticking your arm out and breaking your wrist, would take this any day over the wrist imo.

 

[hesibudifabla]

Originally Posted by ncycle .

Hi. I am in the same situation as you. Did you get the surgery? It is 7 months for me, and non-union. Waiting to see a surgeon now. Exact same break, good range of motion now, and not too much pain....But, really active and want full use of the arm.

Here it is 12/10/12 and I totally forgot about this website. I ended up having surgery at the Columbia VA center. They installed a Ti plate. I was doing careful pull-ups exactly one month after surgery (surgery occurred 2/2/11). It is completely healed up now and I need to get the plate taken out. Life returned to normal for me around June of 2011. I HIGHLY recommend getting plated if you snap your bones.

 

[nick00less]

Its been a year and a half since i broke mine and had basically immediate surgury. As of today and for about a year now i have full movement and besides the feeling and the look my body feels the same, i have zero issues with movement or rubbing of bones. I have a plate with 6 screws, you can feel it under my skin but its hard to see unless you are looking for it, mostly you just see a scar there. It was wierd at first but like everything after awhile you just accept it being there. THey will take it out after a year i was told but i am really skinny and tehy want to leave mine in so i am probably going to die with this inside my body. When i am old, it may be a pain i dont know taht will be 25 + years from now.  I am a shipper/receiver and lift boxes all day long, heavy ones at times and no issues. 100 percent back to normal. I couldnt imagine not having the surgury.

How long after the surgery were you able to resume your job as a shipper/receiver?

 

[mitteg]

Hi, I've also broken my collarbone. Now it has been 3 weeks post op and although i still feel a bit sore i can move my arm and sholder without problem. I'm doing some exercises like moving my arm up and down (no more than 90 degrees), pressing a ball, and swimming. Swimming is hard because i feel i have weak muscles. iI cant fully do brace, just do the movement while walking in the pool. I also do stationary bike 45' a day, and walk for an hour or more. Everyday feels better then the day before so hopefully i will progress quickly. In my case there was no other option but opertate as my collarbone was displaced and it could take ages to fuse according to my doctor. Thanks to this forum..There is a lot of valuable info about this injury. By the way here is my gnarly scar:

 

[bbninja]

Originally Posted by nick00less .


How long after the surgery were you able to resume your job as a shipper/receiver?

I went back to work 3 weeks after surgury, My surgean was not happy when i told him 8 weeks post op that i had been back to work for 5 weeks but i live in a county were they do not feel the need to supplement your income until you are completly broke (canada) so i needed the money. Basically you do not get a cheque around here until being out of work for 5 weeks and when you do it is 1 weeks pay at 65 percent so 5 weeks of bills and a 65 percent check what a joke. Anyways i had a helper do most of the work when i went back they just wanted me back for my brain so i can keep things moving. After 3 weeks of that i started doing it on my own again so was lifting boxes probably 6 weeks post op but my surgean would advise against it i am sure.