My Shoulder Injury Finally Resolved – Thanks Dr. D!

shoulder injury leftOn June 9, 2015, I fell in a bathtub on a business trip in Houston, Texas.  I broke my left shoulder and tore the left rotator cuff underneath the break. It was a nightmare fall.

In the beginning, only the broken shoulder was diagnosed. The doctor immediately wrote a prescription for physical therapy. He said I had to do everything possible to overcome the frozen shoulder caused from the break. I struggled day and night with excruciating pain, which intensified during and after physical therapy treatments. During the next five months, I continued to travel with my job. I had to do all lifting with the right side of my body or ask other people in the restaurant to lift heavy equipment for me if I could not manage with the right arm and side of my body.

It was even difficult to lift my left arm and shoulder to drive my car or open the door of the car. The physical therapists stretched and pulled my left broken shoulder and arm in all kinds of positions as I went back and forth and did the painful exercises that they prescribed. I continuously told the physical therapists that I was in excruciating pain and told my doctor that I was suffering with pain day and night. The doctor and the physical therapist told me that a shoulder break was one of the most painful breaks and that I would have to endure the pain of physical therapy in order to regain range of motion and strength.

I could not take the pain medication that I was prescribed because I was traveling, driving, and working very long hours. For those five months, I was either on the road working or attending my physical therapy sessions. For four months I did physical therapy two to three times per week with little or no improvement and increasing pain.

Even after the x-ray showed that the break had healed, I was still in excruciating pain and unable to sleep at night. I was exhausted from travel, working hours, the constant physical therapy, and the pain.

Without approval from Workers Comp, I decided to get an appointment at 1st Choice Sports Rehab with Dr. Niklaus DelFavero. Dr. DelFavero took the time to listen to every detail and took extensive notes. His main concern was the cause of my pain since the shoulder had healed by this point. He asked very specific questions, and he carefully examined my left arm and left shoulder. The deep tissue fascial distortion and ART treatments that he performed on my left arm and left shoulder did relieve some of my pain. I shared this with my shoulder doctor, and he wrote a prescription that was approved by Workers Comp for Dr. DelFavero to continue treatments if it would help with pain relief and range of motion.

After the third treatment with Dr. DelFavero, I continued to share with him that I was still experiencing pain that would not allow me sleep through the night.  Dr. DelFavero encouraged me to request a MRI arthrogram from my shoulder doctor. Based on Dr. DelFavero’s recommendation, my shoulder doctor ordered the MRI arthrogram. That test revealed a rotator cuff tear underneath the shoulder break area that would require surgery to repair.

If it had not been for Dr. DelFavero’s years of experience, his ability to pinpoint the cause and proper treatment of injury, I would still be suffering today.

I had the surgery in December, 2015, to repair the left rotator cuff tear and I began to see the light at the end of the tunnel. After the rotator cuff surgery, I continued with physical therapy, but they were never as successful as what Dr. DelFavero had done (fascial distortion and ART treatment).

The shoulder surgeon eventually prescribed more treatments from Dr. DelFavero, and those treatments definitely helped with range of motion and pain relief.

I also began to experience intense pain in my right elbow from overuse of the right side. My shoulder surgeon advised more treatments with Dr. DelFavero, and they proved to be so effective that I did not need to use all the treatments that had been approved.

Dr. DelFavero leads a team of professional, caring, highly effective staff, and I am certain that I would be suffering from constant pain if it had not been for Dr. DelFavero’s adept ability to diagnosis and properly treat my injuries. I give the highest recommendation possible for the treatment and care that I received from Dr. DelFavero and his staff.

Thankful!

Kristy Evans


Decatur Office

2545 Lawrenceville Hwy

Suite 100

Decatur, GA 30033

404-377-0011

fax 770-939-9353

Johns Creek Office

9810-B Medlock Bridge Rd

Suite 104

Johns Creek, GA 30097

404-300-9931

fax 770-939-9353