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Old February 28, 2012, 07:41 PM   #76
Murdock
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Last year I recovered from a torn (not through) biceps tendon. A month of PT did it for me-those folks knew what they were doing. The scary part was the OS told me that if it had been severed, there wasn't much that could be done. I had never heard of that and it scared the hell out of me. Didn't do any shooting during this most of the time this is time, getting better was all I had on my mind.
With respect to a biceps tendon rupture, the structure that is most often torn is the long head of the biceps muscle/tendon unit. What this means is that there are two connections at the upper end of the muscle where it connects to the skeleton on the shoulder blade and humerus bone. If the long head is torn, the muscle and arm still function (i.e.; you can bend your elbow to lift things). Repairs are usually performed on "younger people" since in most cases "older people" don't lift and carry as much. In its infinite wisdom, the medical establishment makes the decision for you that you that the cost of the repair and rehabilitation is not necessary for old farts, since they aren't as active and in need of strong bodies. Unless you tell them otherwise. The reality is that most of us over 60 are fine with that. So my suspicion is that the surgeon could have repaired the tendon had it ruptured, but felt that doing so may have been troublesome and perhaps nor necessary for you to be able to carry on.

The other end of the muscle, where it attaches to the forearm below the elbow, is a different cat. That has to be fixed or the elbow ain't gonna work well at all.

Tendon repairs in general in the hand, wrist and fingers require that the orthopedic surgeon and Occupational or Physical therapist be specially trained experienced. There is always a balance between getting the tendon moving enough to avoid scar tissue gluing the moving parts down, and alternatively risking rupturing the repaired tendon with too much movement/stress. For surgical repairs of hand and wrist tendons, I would opt for local anesthesia so that the surgeon could test my ability to move after the tendon was repaired. Too short or too long leads to trouble. If/when it's me and my paw, believe me the doc and I are gonna talk about it.
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Old February 28, 2012, 07:49 PM   #77
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Sorry abou your injury. Having spent a lot in managing rehab and being rehabed I want Reemphasis the recommendations all ready made.

1. See a hand specialist. They can work miracles. Had an employ, a machinist who partially severed a tendon in his hand. The ER Doc did not have the skills to diagnois or repair it. The Hand guy did.

2. A Physcial Threapist who is certified in hands is a MUST. I ripped the tendons in my third finger right hand in 1970. I did not get proper therapy. It is still not right today.

3. Do your therapy. It will hurt like He double hockey sticks. Eat the pain it is you friend. When I had my knee replacement I screamed in pain when my therapist worked the knee. He stopped and I made him continue. I now have a better range of motion than I did before the surgry. The pain is worth it.

4. You now have the oppurtunity to become an outstanding weak hand shooter. As Tony Curtis said in the Pink Submarine, "There is profit in Chaos."

I wish you luck and let us know how you are recovering.
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Old February 28, 2012, 11:56 PM   #78
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Lol. I swear I love you guys...

UPDATE: SURGERY TOMORROW! I'm getting a surgery done..2 pins in my finger to keep it from shifting anymore. I went to a hand doctor. This is best for me. I even have a leave of absence from work. Unfortunatly. But oh well.

Oh....and guys.....to cope with this...guess what I put on layaway. So no one would take it from me again. When my tax return check comes in....its mine! ....





I HAD TO!!! ALWAYS WANTED ONE!!! DON'T YELL AT ME!!!

SA 1911 - XD45 - G21sf - G22 - G27 - Hk USP 40 - SIG P226 E2 - PX4 Storm - Browning High-Power - S&W M19-3 - CZ-82 - Mossberg 590 - Remington 870 - Rock River AR-15
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Old February 29, 2012, 08:55 AM   #79
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Yeah, I kinda suspected pins were in your future from the x-ray. Next be sure that the doc sends you to a CHT for occupational therapy. If he doesn't know one find a CHT on HTCC.org. The site has an easy search function.

Good on the gun. We like.
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Old February 29, 2012, 03:27 PM   #80
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guess what I put on layaway
That's no good! You can't reverse the safety!
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Old February 29, 2012, 04:35 PM   #81
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The other end of the muscle, where it attaches to the forearm below the elbow, is a different cat. That has to be fixed or the elbow ain't gonna work well at all.
That's even scarier. This is where it was torn. After a week of PT the therapist was poking me in the crook of my elbow with her thumb, "breaking up scar tissue." Can't much argue with success, as my pain was 50% gone after just one week. 3 weeks after that I was done. No relapses, so far. OS said that if it had severed, my biceps would have pushed up into my shoulder area and not much could be done about it. I'm thinking emergency surgery and he's thinking nothing? Didn't make sense to me, but then I'm not an Orthopedic Surgeon, either. He, OTOH is the OS for the Detroit Red Wings.

You're a scary guy, Murdock.
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Old February 29, 2012, 06:59 PM   #82
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Originally Posted by Murdock View Post
Yeah, I kinda suspected pins were in your future from the x-ray. Next be sure that the doc sends you to a CHT for occupational therapy. If he doesn't know one find a CHT on HTCC.org. The site has an easy search function.

Good on the gun. We like.
Yes! Thank you Murdock! All of you, even you few weirdos lmao. I did my surgery this morning at 10:30 I have 2 pins inserted as I text this. They'll be there for 3 weeks till he removes them. I was not put under. I thought it was canceled so I ate. I was just under local and was awake the whole time while they drilled me and all that. I moved my finger and made a pretty good sized fist. It's 7:00 now and I feel a liiiiiittle bit of pain.


Can't wait to get my freaking Colt! Doc says I'll be back to 100% in a few months. I'll post pics on my check up tomorrow of the Xray. Till then I'm kind of carrying lefty and my nightstand gun instead of the Glock 21 is my PX4 storm in 9mm.

SA 1911 - XD45 - G21sf - G22 - G27 - Hk USP 40 - SIG P226 E2 - PX4 Storm - Browning High-Power - S&W M19-3 - CZ-82 - Mossberg 590 - Remington 870 - Rock River AR-15
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Old February 29, 2012, 08:22 PM   #83
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I have 2 pins inserted as I text this.
Pix.
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Old February 29, 2012, 10:23 PM   #84
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Originally Posted by motorhead0922 View Post
Pix.
Xray tomorrow couldn't today...they had me in a gown and all. -__- lol. Tomorrow from 8-11am

SA 1911 - XD45 - G21sf - G22 - G27 - Hk USP 40 - SIG P226 E2 - PX4 Storm - Browning High-Power - S&W M19-3 - CZ-82 - Mossberg 590 - Remington 870 - Rock River AR-15
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Old March 1, 2012, 09:49 AM   #85
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Originally Posted by Constantine
...they had me in a gown and all.
That's NOT what we want pix of . . .
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Old March 1, 2012, 09:52 AM   #86
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Oh shoot! Sorry guys!!!



SA 1911 - XD45 - G21sf - G22 - G27 - Hk USP 40 - SIG P226 E2 - PX4 Storm - Browning High-Power - S&W M19-3 - CZ-82 - Mossberg 590 - Remington 870 - Rock River AR-15
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Old March 1, 2012, 09:53 AM   #87
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SA 1911 - XD45 - G21sf - G22 - G27 - Hk USP 40 - SIG P226 E2 - PX4 Storm - Browning High-Power - S&W M19-3 - CZ-82 - Mossberg 590 - Remington 870 - Rock River AR-15
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Old March 1, 2012, 02:05 PM   #88
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Wow, those pins are wild! I have not seen that done before.

It reinforces my long-held belief that orthopedic surgery is just carpentry with clean tools.
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Old March 1, 2012, 02:33 PM   #89
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Lol tell me about it. My knee is a work of art itself. Titanium in there and all

SA 1911 - XD45 - G21sf - G22 - G27 - Hk USP 40 - SIG P226 E2 - PX4 Storm - Browning High-Power - S&W M19-3 - CZ-82 - Mossberg 590 - Remington 870 - Rock River AR-15
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Old March 1, 2012, 03:07 PM   #90
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It reinforces my long-held belief that orthopedic surgery is just carpentry with clean tools.
That's exactly how I describe it to my patients. If you want to hear some real construction site noise, visit the OR when they're doing a hip replacement with a drill, mallet and chisel.

Constantine: Looks like a ice, neat job. The pins will provide much better, early stability for the healing fracture than a splint or that awful foam-and-metal thing they put on you in the ER. You're still looking at about 12 weeks for the bone to be healed, though. Getting the pins out again may not be too big of a deal, and again will be done with you awake, on a local if you even need one. Watch out for the pins breaking though the skin, and if they do keep things clean. Sometimes they come out easy, other times not so easy, but it will still go fairly quickly and probably will be done right in the office.

Hopefully the OS feels good enough about the stability of the fixation that you can get going on an early range of motion protocol.

If swelling is an issue, a CHT therapist has some ways of getting it down quickly (ultrasound, compression bandaging, edema glove, Kinesio tape, etc.) so that you have better movement.

Heat and/or unexplained redness in the skin, elevated pain, etc. are all signs of infection. If that happens, call the doc. If it happens after normal business hours, go to the ER.

Let us know how it goes.
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Old March 1, 2012, 09:27 PM   #91
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Teach yourself to shoot left handed....you will be glad you did.
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Old March 2, 2012, 09:44 PM   #92
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sorry man, that looks nasty.

I had a freak stroke when I was pretty young and had to learn how to use my left side until my right was back to snuff. I won't say it was easy, but it was easier than I though it would be, when I really tried.

To be honest with you, brushing my teeth was about the worst part. I hated that with a burning passion. And now that I'm all better, mostly, I can do nearly anything with either hand. Some things I even changed my dominant hand (I find myself eating lefty a lot).

So look at it this way, at least when your finger is better you'll be able to shoot like Red Ryder.
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Old March 3, 2012, 01:54 AM   #93
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Man up...I shoot left handed all the time...wait I am a lefty. Now is a good time to buy a buckmark or ruger handgun and a lot of bulk ammo 22lr and start practicing your weak hand shooting.
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Old March 13, 2012, 02:05 PM   #94
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Constantine,

Sorry to hear about the finger! I should thank you though, after I read your post I started working more right handed dry firing into my training
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Old March 14, 2012, 01:45 AM   #95
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That ain't no excuse...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEn6vDVP7eQ

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Old March 15, 2012, 08:20 AM   #96
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I think Charter Arms still makes a left handed revolver if that helps.
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Old April 16, 2012, 01:19 AM   #97
Tactical Jackalope
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BUMP!

Update...I'm 2 days away from having the metal pins removed from my finger.

I've been training left handed and let me tell you..It's as bipolar as my ex girlfriend. I can't shoot for the life of me a tight group even close to what I can do with my right hand. :/ I am very discouraged..Not gonna lie.

It is however, progressing a lot. So far it bends on it's own 90 degrees..Just really weak. The pins keep scratching me up from the inside. Kinda annoying lol not the worst I've ever been through. Believe me..just weird.

So..at the range today..left handed..Finally shot my Glock 22 since I found 2 boxes of ammo laying around. My once favorite caliber (.40) stressed me out. I even limp wristed and jammed the poor thing once. -__- didn't even manage that one handed with the Glock 21sf a month ago. Weird... Anyways..Shot my SIG since that's what I've been carrying at 8:00 since this whole thing happened. Not too bad with that thankfully. My buddy gave me his Glock 26 barrel. Well..lone wolf. To swap into my Glock 27 And did well with that..

Maybe I should carry the 27/26 now? Idk...


I miss my right trigger finger O_O
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Old April 18, 2012, 07:20 AM   #98
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Pins come out today, yes?

Left hand accuracy depends upon the same fundamentals you first learned with your right side, but you need to give the left hand an opportunity to learn them 'cause they involve a different part of the brain. (The right side of the body uses the left half of the brain, and the left side uses the right half of the brain). The reason most of us have a dominant side is that less brain "hard drive" is used. Ambidextrous people take up more brain space with motor skills than those with a dominant side.

Dry firing and practicing the presentation work just as well for the left hand, and because you already know the "right" way to shoot right-handed, you can avoid the bad habits you learned with your right hand when you first started shooting.

A fine-motor skill like shooting or tying shoes requires 2,000-4,000 repetitions for it to become learned. Once learned, it gets stored in a deeper, lower portion of the brain. When first learning, we use the frontal lobe and the sensory-motor strip of the cerebral cortex because we have to concentrate our attention to get the skill smoothed out. Later, a learned activity/skill requires only subconscious rather than overtly conscious concentration to be performed.

Have you lined up a therapist yet?
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Old April 18, 2012, 12:55 PM   #99
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Murdock. You're awesome man. I'm still under a lot of sedatives. When I finish up here I'm knocking out. Will have a therapist by tomorrow thankfully and here are my pics!



Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk 2

Last edited by Tactical Jackalope; April 18, 2012 at 04:46 PM.
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Old April 18, 2012, 01:10 PM   #100
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Good to see that you are improving.

Oh and me personaly I would not worry about tight groups when shooting a handgun weak handed with one hand. Torso hits are what I care about. If I want to shoot tight groups that is what my rifles are for.

Hope the therapy goes well, and helps.
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