Why Does Shoulder Surgery Hurt So Bad?

We’ve evolved in surgery massively. I tell patients that contemporary shoulder surgery done with modern techniques, anesthesia, pain medicine protocols, and rehab techniques is not nearly what it was 15 or 20 years ago.

Anytime you go inside someone’s body and change something, there’s going to be some discomfort. There’s just no way around that yet, and hopefully, we’ll get there someday. But with how we do our surgeries now, the majority of our patients feel better within two weeks of surgery.

We’ve gotten light-years better. There’s still going to be some discomfort, but most of our patients tell us it’s not that bad at all, especially after that first week. They’re able to do everything they need to do in life and not miss a beat.