I had collarbone surgery about 1.5 years ago. For the last year I started to notice severe discomfort in my neck and outer shoulders after 1-2hrs on the road bike. I am at the point where my neck and shoulders may be sore for the rest of the day.
Tried all kinds of position changes but did not make a difference.
Also I am having a hard time breathing on the opposite site when swimming (I am an experienced/strong swimmer)
I don’t have any other issues on a daily basis. No problems in the gym with weights etc.
Could it be related to the hardware, maybe shoulder or any other related issues?
Any collarbone victims had similar experiences?
Thanks for your help
AR
Took a bad spill on a group ride and was hence faced with what is called a Non-Union after several month of waiting. Swimming has not been the same since.
Only issue I’ve had is slight numbness towards the front part of the shoulder, which the surgeon said would be normal since they would have to make the incision through nerves in that area. No issues with swim stroke, running armswing, lifting weights etc. Only time it hurts is when my infant daughter accidently bumps/whacks it when I’m holding her.
Did they go in and pin it? At one time that was fairly common for clavicle fractures but much less nowadays. I’ve dealt with a number of these injuries post surgery in my 25 yrs as a chiro. It’s not uncommon to have assymetrical muscle imbalance which would also explain your swimming difficulties.
Have you tried chiro, massage and specific neck exercises/stretches?
If you are riding low/steep there is no getting away from the fact that this puts more strain on your neck as you must hold it in more extension. So it could be your riding position needs to be modified or maybe even assessed correctly by somebody who understands the possible complications of the injury…
Yes I have a plate and 8 screws. Had no choice.
I did see a Chiro/ART recently but it did not make any difference.
I am not too low on my road bike 7-8cm drop and I am 6’2
But I also just flipped the stem so its less now.
I had surgery for the same thing in June. I’ve been back lifting weights as normal, but not as much as I hoped. I don’t notice any pain on long road rides or racing in the aero position. I actually was racing about 6 weeks after my surgery. The one thing that does bother me is massage. I just got one tonight and jumped off the table when my therapist forgot about surgery and got close to the hardware. My surgeon told me that I’d have typical discomfort on the skin, but the hardware probably wouldn’t be removed. How much PT did you have? I had a good 3 months and I think it really helped.
I broke mine last year, but didn’t have to have surgery on it. the only problems i have with it now are when i’m lifting & doing chest exercises or dips… hurts a skotch then, but besides that nothing. I’d think about just doing more therapy with it. Best of Luck
I had a plate and screws put in last August and still feel stiff in that area. Once the local pool opens and warms up I’ll start back swimming and I think that’ll help. If not, I’ll probably have the plate taken out. Have you talked to your doctor about that?
He said to leave it in unless it bothers me but it may be safer to remove it any ways in light of possible future crashes.
After 4000yds and a 2:30hr ride yesterday I am still stiff and sore this morning around my shoulders and neck
I had a plate w/ 8 screws. I had it removed after 16 months. I knew it was bothering me some, but I didn’t realize until after it was gone how much it had been affecting me. I still occassionally have minor shoulder pain on a long ride, but nowhere close to what I experienced before. Everyday life is better too. There are things I wasn’t doing that I can do again. (ie. my kids jumping off my shoulders in the swimming pool.)
The surgery to have it removed was a breeze too. I had surgery Friday and was pretty close to normal by Tuesday. I think I took one paid med after I left the hospital and that was due more to fear from remembering how intense the pain was after the original surgery than it was to the actual pain from the removal surgery.
Did not realize the recovery is so short. Doc made me believe it another month at least. When were you able to swim again, lift weights etc? did your insurance cover it?
I had a plate w/ 8 screws. I had it removed after 16 months. I knew it was bothering me some, but I didn’t realize until after it was gone how much it had been affecting me. I still occassionally have minor shoulder pain on a long ride, but nowhere close to what I experienced before. Everyday life is better too. There are things I wasn’t doing that I can do again. (ie. my kids jumping off my shoulders in the swimming pool.)
The surgery to have it removed was a breeze too. I had surgery Friday and was pretty close to normal by Tuesday. I think I took one paid med after I left the hospital and that was due more to fear from remembering how intense the pain was after the original surgery than it was to the actual pain from the removal surgery.
Ditto here. Plate and 7 screws. The surgery coming out was a breeze. I was literally pushing my grandmother around the mall in her wheelchair the very next day. I would have done it sooner if I knew.
Also made some small pain I had go away. Only remaining issues are slight pain when wearing a backpack and some residual numbness on the front of the outer shoulder.