It's been exactly one week since Seahawk's free safety Earl Thomas returned to full practice from dislocating his shoulder in the championship game against the Packers.Now a little more than 48 hours until Super Bowl XLIX fans wonder; is it possible for Thomas to play 100% with such short recovery period? To give you a better understanding of the injury when you watch the big game this weekend Orthopedic Associates' Dr. Manuj Singhal shares his expert opinion and explains the mechanics of the shoulder.
The shoulder is built on a foundation of bones that are connected by ligaments and allows you to move your arm in almost any direction. However, if any of these parts are damaged shoulder movement can become painful or difficult. One way a dislocation will occur is when the head of the humerus is forced out of its socket, which is exactly what Earl Thomas did while tackling Randall Cobb of the Packers. Thomas exited the field to the locker room, put his shoulder back in place (reduced) and surprisingly returned to the game during the second half with a brace. Despite his second half return it remained questionable in the following weeks whether he would still be recovered for the big game or not. How could he return and finish the whole game after sustaining this type of injury? Dr. Singhal explains a shoulder dislocation strains or tears tissues around the joint, so Thomas is most likely not recovered from the
from the injury but has reducedthe pain level enough so he can play. The brace he wore out of the locker room will restrict the movement of his shoulder on the field and help prevent redislocation. Dr. Singhal says this weekend we should notice that Thomas is not 100% but it is not a surprise with his age and assumed good health that he is able to play the big game this weekend. However, Dr. Singhal added, more than likely as soon as the season is officially over Thomas will have to undergo reconstructive surgery.
How common does this injury occur? Quite often in contact sports as you can imagine. Dr. Singhal serves as team physician for The Colony High School, Lake Dallas High School and Lewisville High School and treats this injury frequently he says. In contact sports it is one of the more common injuries and typically the younger patients see the highest chance of dislocating again.
So this weekend when you are watching the big game, keep an eye out on Earl Thomas and let us know how you think the injury affected his game!
