Job-related rotator cuff injuries often require surgery

If you work in a grocery store or another type of retail outlet, you undoubtedly understand slip-and-fall risk. Accumulated water or damaged flooring may cause an accident, leaving you with a torn rotator cuff. This type of injury often requires surgical intervention.  An acute rotator cuff tear typically requires an “injury by accident” to be covered in North Carolina, but it is possible to get a degenerative tear covered if it is due to prolonged lifting or overhead work.

Your rotator cuff is a collection of four muscles that acts as connective tissue in your shoulder. If an accident at your place of employment causes you to tear your rotator cuff, you may not be able to move your arm or shoulder correctly. Your shoulder may also pop out of joint easily, causing you tremendous discomfort.

The need for medical intervention

It is normal to feel shoulder pain after a slip-and-fall injury at work. If you have a torn rotator cuff, though, your injury is not likely to recover on its own.

Whether you need surgery likely depends on the severity of your injury. If you have a full-thickness tear, however, you have a hole in your tendon. Surgery may be the only way to repair this damage.

A long road to recovery

Rotator cuff surgery is typically not a minor procedure. The length of your recovery likely depends on the extent of your injury, the invasiveness of your surgery and the nature of your overall health.

Nevertheless, many surgeons ask their patients to prepare for a four- to six-month recovery period.

During your recovery, you may need follow-up visits with the surgeon or your primary care physician. You may also require physical and vocational rehabilitation before returning to your job duties. While your road to recovery may be long, having rotator cuff surgery may boost your chances of going back to work.