Torn labrum? College recruitment?

[tbb113]

My older son has just been informed that he has a torn labrum in his left shoulder and the orthopedist is recommending surgery. He is quite confused about what to do since he plays football at the Community College level and is hoping to be recruited in the fall. He believes he tore his labrum in the middle of his senior year of HS so he has already played 1 1/2 seasons injured (he is an offensive lineman). He has been told complete recovery can take as long as 9 to 12 months with a minimum of six weeks in a sling following surgery. He says it only really hurts when he is weight lifting, otherwise it seldom hurts.

He has spoken to his coaches/trainers and they aren't sure what he should do either.

Anybody have the surgery? How long did it take you to recover?

Any coaches want to try and answer if he should have the surgery now and red-shirt this year (which will mean he can't red-shirt if he goes to a Division I school) or if he should delay the surgery and then see if he is recruited? Would this hurt his chances at recruitment?

Any words of wisdom?

[ErinM]

No, sorry, no words of wisdom here. I can tell you that my mom has been diagnosed with the same thing, a labral tear, but she's not doing surgery yet. Instead, she's gotten injections of some kind; they were going to see if they worked before scheduling her for arthroscopic surgery.


*For the record, my mother does NOT play football, but sometimes lives her life as if she is. :rolleyes::)

[gigicancook]

My daughter is a college soccer coach and I will ask her about your son and get back to you.............My first thought is to get it taken care of now, I would be afraid he would get hurt further and then it might not be able to be repaired or not make a full recovery. Also, any recruiting coach has to know he has this injury.

[storispa]

Do some research, find out where the professionals in your area are treated and make an appointment with a doctor/specialist who works with athletes. They will know best how to treat your son and keep him at his athletic level.

[Robyn1007]

This is a link from one of the foremost ortho's in the country, maybe it will give you some more info. http://www.steadman-hawkins.com/labral/overview.asp

[Laura]

Each of DH's children currently play division I sports, and all had serious injuries prior to starting their college career. With two of his kids who got scholarships, the college coaches wanted the injuries operated on before they began playing.

I know that in swimming a college recruit can email coaches and engage in discussions with them. I would find out from his community college what the rules are for contact between recruits and coaches. The coaches will need to know about the injury and then they can make the decision. How interested is your son's CC coach in helping him play at the D1 level? He should be able to get in touch with his contacts and give your son advice.

[tbb113]

Thanks for the thoughts. Right now he is leaning towards not having the surgery and seeing what happens in the fall. There is a special brace he can wear during practice/games to help minimize his chance of further injury.

He is talking with his coaches and I've told him to see if he can talk to some of his friends' football coaches (Div I) and see what they tell him to do.