[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2019\/08\/karas-story-labral-tear\/#Article","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2019\/08\/karas-story-labral-tear\/","headline":"Kara\u2019s Story: Fitness Instructor Experiences a Labral Tear","name":"Kara\u2019s Story: Fitness Instructor Experiences a Labral Tear","description":"Learn more about Kara's road to recovery with UPMC Sports Medicine. ","datePublished":"2019-08-29","dateModified":"2019-09-12","author":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.upmc.com\/services\/sports-medicine-regions","name":"Sports Medicine","url":"https:\/\/www.upmc.com\/services\/sports-medicine-regions","sameAs":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/sports-medicine\/","parentOrganization":"UPMC"},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"UPMC HealthBeat","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/UPMC-HealthBeat-Logo.png","url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/UPMC-HealthBeat-Logo.png","width":600,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/kara_blg.jpg","url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/kara_blg.jpg","height":327,"width":754},"url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2019\/08\/karas-story-labral-tear\/","about":["Health Topics A-Z","Orthopaedics","Sports Medicine"],"wordCount":680,"articleBody":"\u201cAt that point, my shoulder felt even better than before I injured it. I don\u2019t think I realized how bad it was\u00ad \u2014 and how bad it was getting \u2014 over those 25 years\u201d \u00a0– KaraAn Injury ResurfacesPhoto Credit: Jamie LeonardKara was a collegiate swimmer until tendonitis in her right shoulder became so painful it ended her swimming career. After she stopped swimming, Kara\u2019s shoulder pain subsided and she was able to manage her condition.Nearly 25 years later, Kara is married with three children and owns a dance\/fitness studio and swimming school in Donegal, Pennsylvania. Besides spending time with her family, she helps children and adults stay active and healthy as a fitness instructor and swim coach. That active lifestyle led to a return of her shoulder pain in early 2018.\u201cIt wasn\u2019t sudden,\u201d says Kara. \u201cI would be in the gym and with each exercise, it hurt a little bit more. Then one day, I couldn\u2019t even raise my arm above my head.\u201dSearching for a SurgeonKara thought that resting her shoulder would again relieve the pain. However, it quickly became clear that she needed to seek medical attention. When a friend suggested that she see Albert Lin, MD at UPMC Sports Medicine, she made an appointment and saw him less than two weeks later.After a thorough examination of Kara\u2019s shoulder, including an MRI, Dr. Lin diagnosed a complete labral tear. He compared her labrum to a \u201crope that continued to fray, until it tore from the bone.\u201d He also found calcium deposits within her rotator cuff tendons and noticed degenerative problems in her shoulder. Given Kara\u2019s active lifestyle, Dr. Lin recommended surgery to repair the tear.\u201cDr. Lin really takes time to find out your background and why you want the surgery,\u201d says Kara. He reviewed the test results with Kara, explained what he saw in her shoulder, and discussed his plan for minimizing interference with her work with clients.A Surgery Worthwhile\u201cDr. Lin was really good about understanding the importance of timing the surgery so I could work it around my business schedule,\u201d Kara said. The surgery took place exactly six weeks before the start of her summer swimming school, ensuring that although she couldn\u2019t use her arm, she could get into the water to teach.Dr. Lin performed Kara\u2019s surgery \u2014 an arthroscopic posterior labral repair and superior labrum anterior and posterior repair, as well as a subacromial decompression and breaking up calcifications in her shoulder joint \u2014 at UPMC East in Monroeville, Pennsylvania. \u201cIt was a very positive experience because I got better almost daily,\u201d she says.Kara\u2019s right arm remained in a sling with little to no movement for four weeks after surgery. She then began a months-long physical therapy regimen. \u201cBeing that this is my field, I was able to do the exercises outside of physical therapy too,\u201d says Kara. She says that dedication to her therapy program was key to her recovery. Her advice for someone going through the same thing: \u201cDo your PT, and keep at it! It\u2019s not comfortable to begin with \u2014 and it actually hurts \u2014 but that\u2019s where the recovery happens.\u201dExceptional CareFive months after surgery, Kara\u2019s shoulder felt even better than before she injured it. \u201cI don\u2019t think I realized how bad it was \u2014 and how bad it was getting \u2014 over those 25 years,\u201d she says. \u201cI now have a fully functioning shoulder; I can do everything, and it feels so much better.\u201dNo more than a year after the surgery, Kara remains extremely satisfied with the results of her experience with Dr. Lin. All of her strength and flexibility has returned, her shoulder is functioning at 100 percent, and she is free of pain.Kara says that finding the right surgeon is important. That\u2019s why she has referred her brother, nephew, and a close friend to Dr. Lin to treat their shoulder injuries \u201cHe is great surgeon and a wonderful person in general,\u201d says Kara. \u201cI can\u2019t say enough good things about him.\u201d"},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"2019","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2019\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"08","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2019\/\/08\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Kara\u2019s Story: Fitness Instructor Experiences a Labral Tear","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2019\/08\/karas-story-labral-tear\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]