Winged Scapula

[Chris2dhs]

Hello!

I have been powerballing for about 10 months and have previously managed 12,***.

About two months ago i crashed on my bike and hurt my shoulder, i assumed i had just sprained something so i was gentle with the powerball for about a week.
The shoulder no longer hurt but i was only able to manage around 10,8**. About three weeks ago i noticed my scapula was poking out a lot more on the side i had hurt when i pushed against a wall (as you do)!
I stopped pretty much all exercises with the arm (biking, badminton, climbing, powerballing) until i had it checked out.

I had the diagnosis the other day and it seems i have damaged my long thoracic nerve and paralysed my anterior serrator (unsure as to what degree) and this has lead to the "winged scapula". :(

I have been referred to a physio, although there might be quite a long wait.

Are there any specific exercises i can do with my powerball to stabilise my scapula...and how likely is it i will regain full use of my shoulder?

I understand that nerves generally don't regenerate if damaged to a serious extent!

Any help would be much appreciated,

Chris

[Physioblue]

Ooooh, how interesting.

This is one of those things that virtually every physio knows about and only about 1% have ever seen.

If its a direct blow to the nerve, like it sounds, from the bike injury, there is a good chance it will recover.
The serratus anterior muscle is used (as you have discovered) to keep the shoulder blade tied to the wall of your thoracic spine (rear rib cage). If you haven't got a good one, the shoulder blade "wings out".
Ultimately, if the nerve isn't working, there is no exercise that will improve you until the nerve starts firing again.:(

One of the best exercises to do is press ups against a wall, trying to "feel" for your shoulder blade moving.
It would make sense that the powerball could help as well, as you need a stable shoulder to achieve high scores.
The powerball shouldn't do you any harm, so give it a go.
Hopefully your long thoracic nerve will recover from its trauma (medical word = neuropraxia) and you should then return to normal.