Learn about shoulder pain causes, solutions in interactive Facebook live session

Is joint pain a normal aspect of aging? Does chronic shoulder pain require surgery? Is shoulder replacement my best option for arthritis?

Questions such as these – and many more – will be asked and answered during an upcoming Facebook Live event featuring Tulane Institute of Sports Medicine shoulder expert Dr. Michael O’Brien. The interactive event is scheduled for 7:00pm Thursday, June 13, and will be accessible on the Tulane Health System Facebook page.

“Shoulder pain – as well as stiffness and range of motion – can have a wide variety of causes,” said Dr. O’Brien, a board-certified orthopedic surgeon with fellowship training in shoulder and elbow reconstruction. “You can have issues stemming from injury, from overuse or from disease such as arthritis. And depending on the cause, there are a wide variety of treatments – from rehabilitation to surgical solutions – to help you regain normal activity levels and significantly reduce pain.”

If a shoulder joint replacement if determined to be the best course of treatment, he said, there are also new innovations in surgical technology that make the procedure more effective than ever before.

“At Tulane, we are now able to develop guided, personalized surgical plans that allow surgeons to combine preoperative planning with computer-assisted technology,” Dr. O’Brien said. “This allows us to operate with a new level of accuracy and precision, which in turn means the joint replacements last longer and function better.”

During the Facebook Live session, Dr. O’Brien will provide an overview of common causes of shoulder pain as well as the latest treatment options available. He will also take questions from viewers. This is the latest in a series of Facebook Live events providing live, interactive access to Tulane Health System experts on a variety of health topics.

To learn more about the Tulane Health System’s orthopedic and sports medicine services, please visit Tulane Healthcare. To make an appointment with a Tulane orthopedic specialist, please call the Tulane Orthopedic Clinic at 504.899.2177.