SHOULDER

Shoulders are a complex part of your body with many muscles attaching in one spot. So whether you’re doing laundry, swinging a bat, or cooking dinner, you count on your shoulders for day-to-day functioning.

However, due to the multiple muscles and tendons that attach at your shoulder, it’s a common area of
injury. Surgery is required when other forms of treatment and therapy have not fixed problems or
reduced pain. While recovery after surgery can be long, painful and have complications, it doesn’t have to be. Lytle’s recovery equipment will help you return to normal functioning as soon as possible and with less pain.

Listed below are common shoulder procedures where Lytle Recover Now will allow you to shorten your
recovery by preventing post-op blood clots, reducing pain and swelling, and providing safe motion.

SHOULDER PROCEDURES:

  • Labral Repair: Repairs the torn labrum and capsule deep within your shoulder joint that helps stabilize and guide the shoulder joint’s movement. Common causes of labral tears are falls on outstretched hands, sports injuries and traffic accidents.

  • Rotator Cuff Repair: Repairs tendons at the end of your muscles when they become worn down and frayed, or torn through overuse or a traumatic event. A telltale sign of a rotator cuff tear is when overhead movements are painful or range of motion is limited.

  • Sub Acromial Decompression / Impingement: Restores the joint space by removing the tip of the acromion to relieve pressure on your rotator cuff. Needed when there is inflammation in the shoulder that does not resolve or when, anatomically, the joint space is too small.

  • Total Shoulder Replacement (TSR): Replaces the head of the humerus and the glenoid of the scapula with an artificial ball-and-socket joint. Needed when you have severe osteoarthritis that degrades the cartilage in the shoulder joint; the osteoarthritis is typically caused by damage to the cartilage.

  • Manipulation:Breaks up, or manipulates, scar tissue on your stiff or “frozen” shoulders to regain full motion after an injury or orthopedic procedure.

  • Shoulder Arthroscopy (Scope): Cleans out your shoulder by removing pieces of frayed tendon, pieces of bone or cartilage and by smoothing out any irregularities seen in your joint.

 
Whatever procedure you’re undergoing, you are at risk of developing a blood clot, experiencing significant pain and swelling, or having scar tissue form around the shoulder that limits your range of motion.

To prevent these types of recovery complications and delays, Lytle Medical, in concert with your surgeon, provides you with a number of Rapid Recovery Services. These include a compression therapy device that prevents blood clotting that is common after surgery; a cold therapy device that minimizes the number of narcotic pain pills needed after surgery while simultaneously reducing swelling; and a motion therapy device that diminishes your chances of developing “frozen shoulder” and improves your range of motion.

  • BLOOD CLOT PREVENTION
  • RELIEF FROM PAIN
  • RANGE OF MOTION

Preventing Blood Clots After Shoulder Surgery

Why would a blood clot form in my leg after shoulder surgery?

As you rest following surgery, the blood returns to your heart slower than usual and may form a clot. While everyone is vulnerable to blood clotting during post-surgical activity, your risk is increased with obesity, smoking, hormone replacement therapy, birth control medication, cancer, immobility, or a personal or family history of blood clotting – also called Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT).

Why be concerned?

Developing a blood clot will significantly delay your recovery and is potentially life threatening. If the clot breaks free and travels to your lungs, it can restrict blood flow and the ability of the lungs to transfer oxygen to the blood. If you must to be treated for a blood clot while recovering from surgery, regaining your strength and function are put on hold while dealing with the more immediate crisis.

How to address it?

Blood clot prevention usually involves either a mechanical device that uses intermittent pneumatic compression to squeeze the calves to keep blood moving, or a pharmaceutical blood thinner that limits the blood’s ability to clot. These drugs are administered either orally or through self-injection and carry significant risks associated with stomach ulcers and uncontrolled internal bleeding.

Recover Now with the Rapid Recovery Preventer

Lytle equipment, Preventer. For all orthopedic procedures. Prevents blood clots.
Lytle’s Rapid Recovery Preventer is a mechanical solution to blood clot prevention. The Preventer intermittently squeezes your calves to force blood to flow using a wrap placed around the lower leg that supplies a gentle and intermittent compression of the calf muscle. The Preventer pushes blood up and out of your leg every 45 seconds or so even when you’re sitting or sleeping. Between compressions, the Preventer partially deflates to allow fresh blood to take the place of the pooled/stagnant blood.

IN ADDITION TO INCREASING BLOOD FLOW TO PREVENT CLOTS, THE PREVENTER HAS OTHER BENEFITS:
  • Reduces swelling and edema
  • Allows for a portable, safe and convenient recovery
  • Improves lymphatic drainage
  • Improves soft tissue healing
  • Provides consistent therapy
  • Provides the optimal dosage of therapy – correct hours/repetitions per day

How to get the Rapid Recovery Preventer

To prevent a catastrophic delay in your recovery or serious complications from a blood clot,
make sure you use the Preventer. Follow these easy steps now:

  • 1

    Download and print the
    DVT Preventer order form,
    then take the risk assessment quiz.

  • 2

    Review the sections on Reducing Pain
    and Swelling and Providing Safe Motion
    to see if these Rapid Recovery services
    also should be included with your order.

  • 3

    Have your surgeon or primary care physician
    sign the order form and return it to our
    company via email at patientcare@golytle.com
    or fax it to 248-626-3113.

  • 4

    Answer a call from our Rapid Recovery specialist
    who will initiate your Rapid Recovery Services.

Reducing Pain and Swelling After Shoulder Surgery

Why does surgical trauma cause pain and swelling?

All orthopedic shoulder surgeries involve at least one invasive action that results in pain and swelling. It’s a result of an overabundance of restorative fluid accumulating in the joint that your body then needs to remove. The excess fluid causes you increased pain and swells the shoulder area making it difficult to move.

Why be concerned?

Normally the pain and swelling caused by your body’s response to an invasive event is a good thing. It discourages you from using your shoulder. However, in the case of surgical recovery, the swelling and pain associated with a traumatic event will delay recovery.

How to address it?

Cryotherapy and compression therapy are two common ways to reduce the pain and swelling after surgery. Cryo and compression help avoid any delay or detriment to your shoulder healing. Applying intermittent cryotherapy to the repaired shoulder lowers pain levels and constricts blood vessels that temporarily reduce blood flow to the area allowing the blood to remove injured cells and return oxygenated and replenished blood with healing nutrients. Compression also reduces swelling by slowly squeezing the fluid out of the area. The dynamic and sequential compression found in the Reliever helps gently massage the swelling out of the area.

Recover Now with the Rapid Recovery Reliever

Lytle equipment for the shoulder, Reliever. Reduces pain and swelling.
The best combination for accelerating your post-surgical recovery is to combine cryotherapy and compression therapy to reduce pain by deadening the nerve endings, limiting swelling and allowing for earlier motion. Lytle’s Rapid Recovery Cold Compression Reliever does both. The Reliever turns the cryotherapy cycles on and off while compression stays dynamic, a design that makes it an extremely safe device as there is little risk of tissue damage due to too tight compression.

IN ADDITION TO DECREASING PAIN AND SWELLING, THE RELIEVER HAS OTHER BENEFITS:
  • Lowers narcotic use
  • Improves soft tissue healing
  • Improves fluid and lymphedema drainage
  • Increases blood flow
  • Operates easily
  • Reduces stress on the repair and shoulder joint
  • Allows for safe, convenient recovery
  • Provides the optimal dosage of therapy – correct hours per day
  • Reduces your out-of-pocket cost

How to get the Rapid Recovery Reliever

To reduce pain a speed up the recovery process, make sure you use the Reliever. Follow these easy steps now:

Improving Range of Motion After Shoulder Surgery

Why does scar tissue form after shoulder surgery?

After surgery, the cells in your restorative fluid heal your connective tissue. The orientation of the repaired connective tissue is influenced by movement. If the tissue is immobilized it can form in a random pattern. Sometimes this random pattern leads to scar tissue.

Why be concerned?

Scar tissue can cause significant delays in healing and in some instances require a second surgery to regain the motion in your shoulder. Scar tissue can cause pain, stiffness and trouble moving your shoulder and legs.

How to address it?

Moving your Shoulder after surgery is critical to a healthy recovery because the movement helps you
form strong tissue – not scar tissue. The way to properly move your Shoulder is by a therapy called passive motion. A physical therapist (PT) can provide this motion at his/her office, or a Continuous Passive Motion device can be used at home to slowly move your Shoulder in a safe, controlled manner. A continuous passive motion (CPM) device is a great way to provide the movement needed for a successful recovery.

Recover Now with the Rapid Recovery Mover

Lytle equipment for the shoulder, Mover. Increases your range of motion.
Lytle’s Rapid Recovery Mover is a safe and convenient way to provide passive motion therapy
to maximize the formation of strong tissue and accelerate the speed of your recovery. The microprocessor-controlled device automatically sets the speed and the range at which your shoulder is moved according to what your surgeon has prescribed. This safe and controlled motion does not over stress the repaired tissues and provides PT-quality therapy in your own home.

IN ADDITION TO IMPROVING MOTION, THE MOVER HAS OTHER BENEFITS:
  • Allows for safe increases in motion as you heal
  • Improves soft tissue healing
  • Reduces swelling and edema
  • Speeds up recovery
  • Helps muscle stay passive (not fire while fighting the urge to contract and guard the joint)
  • Provides consistent therapy – not dependent on availability of physical therapist
  • Allows for safe, convenient recovery – less driving to/from physical therapy
  • Provides the optimal dosage of therapy – correct number of hours and repetitions per day
  • Reduces your out-of-pocket cost

How to get the Rapid Recovery Mover

To get your range of motion back after surgery, make sure you use the Mover. Follow these easy steps now:

GET STARTED

Whether you are considering surgery to repair an orthopedic issue, or are already scheduled for surgery, contact us about Lytle Medical’s safe, research based, at home therapy. Call, chat or message us for more information.

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