Labrum repair surgery requires months to heal because the fibrocartilage has a poor blood supply. During surgery, the labrum is stitched together and anchored to the bone. It generally takes about six months for the tissue to heal. Typically, surgeons perform authroscopic surgery to repair shoulder injuries in patients and often use pain pumps to help alleviate pain for up to 72 hours following surgery. Pain pumps offer an alternative to narcotics and pain killers; however, misinformation about how the pain pumps should be used provided by pain pump manufacturers years ago have resulted in debilitating – and for some athletes, career-ending – injury to the shoulder joint.

The injuries stem from a change in the way pain pump manufacturers began to market the devices to surgeons, according to Frank Woodson, shareholder for Beasley Allen Law Firm. When the pain pumps were originally approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the pump’s catheter was to be placed in the shoulder tissue. However, in the 1990s and early 2000s, pain pump manufacturers began advising surgeons to place the pain pump catheters in the joint space, or intra-articular area, allowing pain medication to go directly into the joint space. This use had not been approved by the FDA. Shortly after the pumps were used in the inappropriate manner, per the advice of the pain pump manufacturers, “doctors began to see patients suffer severe damage to their shoulder cartilage that we’ve rarely seen before,” Woodson said.

What resulted was the loss of cartilage, or joint space, commonly called chondrolysis. It leads to severe pain because the cartilage in the shoulder space is gone, causing bones to rub together. As the condition progresses, patients may require shoulder replacement and it makes normal daily activities painful and difficult.

There are approximately 140 lawsuits filed by people who have been injured by misuse of these pain pumps. All are pending in state and federal courts throughout the country. “There are many more cases under review across the country and there will likely be many more filed,” Woodson said. “As patients and physicians learn more about the link between pain pumps and chrondrolysis, I think you’ll see many more people come forward.”

Source: Google: AFP

SOURCE: Pain Pumps › Magic’s Nelson plays just months after shoulder surgery

However, in the 1990s and early 2000s, pain pump manufacturers began to market the product differently, according to Beasley Allen shareholder Frank Woodson. “The catheter was intended and approved by the FDA to be placed into the shoulder tissue. (But) with advice from manufacturers, the pain pump catheters were being placed in the joint space or intra-articular area, which allowed the pain medication into the joint space.”

By advising surgeons to use the pump in such a manner – one that had never been approved by the FDA – tragedy ensued. “Doctors began to see patients suffer severe damage to their shoulder cartilage that we’ve rarely seen before,” Woodson said.

What resulted was the loss of cartilage, or joint space, commonly called chondrolysis. It leads to severe pain because the cartilage in the shoulder space is gone, causing bones to rub together. As the condition progresses, patients may require shoulder replacement and it makes normal daily activities painful and difficult.

There are approximately 140 lawsuits filed by people who have been injured by misuse of these pain pumps. All are pending in state and federal courts throughout the country. “There are many more cases under review across the country and there will likely be many more filed,” Woodson said. “As patients and physicians learn more about the link between pain pumps and chrondrolysis, I think you’ll see many more people come forward.”

SOURCE: Pain Pumps › Pain pump manufacturer’s bad advice leads to ‘tragedy’

The On-Q PainBuster pain pump offers an alternative to traditional intravenous and oral painkillers, which can leave patients feeling groggy. The pain pump uses a small balloon that holds a local anesthetic that is fed through a thin antimicrobial catheter that is inserted into the surgical site. The device injects the pain relief medication directly to the surgical site on a continuous basis for up to 72 hours following surgery. Following surgery, the patient goes home with the implanted device and after two or three days, the patient gently pushes out the catheter and discards the device.

Doctors who have used the pain pumps for hysterectomies and C-sections say the device helps women get up and about faster than using more traditional pain meds.

The I-Flow On Q PainBuster pain pumps have been a popular choice for orthopedic surgeons performing knee and shoulder surgeries. The pain pumps are designed and intended to be used with anesthetics that are administered continuously over time.

However, in shoulder surgeries in particular, the medication delivered directly to the surgery site has caused serious and permanent damage to the cartilage of the shoulder joint. This narrowing of the joint space is known as chondrolysis, a condition in which the complete or nearly complete loss of cartilage in the shoulder joint. Chondrolysis is an irreversible disabling and extremely painful condition.

A recent study published by The American Journal of Sports Medicine identified these intra-articular pain pumps as the likely cause of chondrolysis in shoulders.

There do not appear to be any reported problems with pain pump use following C-sections and hysterectomies at this time.

SOURCE: Pain Pumps › Pain pumps used following C-sections, hysterectomies

According to the October 2007 issue of The American Journal of Sports Medicine, cases have been studied and it has been reported that a strong association between the intra-articular use of high volume pain pumps following arthroscopic shoulder surgery was linked to an unexplainable loss of cartilage in the shoulder joint.

To fully understand why these pumps can cause the loss of cartilage, the reader must understand how the pain pump works. The pain pump, inserted during the surgery, delivers high concentrations of pain medication to the surgical site.

Original product information instructs physicians to insert the pain pump into muscle tissue.  However, many physicians were instructed by representatives marketing the pain pump to insert the pain pump between the joints, into cartilage, to increase the effectiveness of the pump. This usage was never approved by the FDA.

When the pain medication is delivered into the cartilage, it actually kills the cartilage, resulting in severe pain, stiffness in the shoulder and, for most, joint replacement surgeries.

Dr. Charles Beck, an orthopedic surgeon and head of the study of pain pumps, believes that thousands of patients nationwide have been affected negatively by these devices.

SOURCE: Pain Pumps › The pump that doesn’t ease the pain