Guide to Wearing Shoulder Immobilizer during Shoulder Injury

The shoulder joint supports the arm and hence it is not advisable for people to take a shoulder injury non-seriously.

Shoulder immobilizer acts as a great support aid to support and provide protection to injured shoulder area. Living with a shoulder immobilizer can be difficult because the arm is immobilized and that does deter the daily routine activities of person who is suffering from the problem.

The shoulder immobilizer has a support that holds the arm in place i.e. bent right across the chest area and a sling that goes around the shoulder to keep the shoulder in place. There are health experts who feel that using a shoulder immobilizer can cause immobilization of the shoulder and arm which might ultimately result in slow down of the healing process of the body.

Physicians usually advice patients to wear the shoulder immobilizer as part of shoulder dislocation treatment from 4-6 weeks post the surgery because it is during this time that the shoulder needs most support. One should never wear a shoulder immobilizer until and unless the doctor suggests them to wear it because any orthopedic aid, be it knee caps, knee brace or cervical collars, one should not wear them without consulting the doctor.

Post the shoulder immobilizer, some people wear the sling for a while, if they do not feel that they are ready to move around without any support. Also, there are people who feel that they have to travel or do certain activities that might put them at a greater risk of getting a re-injury, for such people, it is important that they wear an immobilizer.

Once, the physician asks you not to wear a shoulder immobilizer, you can move to the physiotherapy part where patients are treated by a physiotherapist who works towards increasing the mobility of the arm and the injured shoulder. This is done to bring the shoulder and arm to move naturally. Also, to avoid a serious case of immobilization, this is extremely necessary.

When you are wearing a shoulder immobilizer or shoulder sling, make sure that its clean and dry, make sure that you wear it at all times, especially while sleeping and moving around. While bathing, one may or may not remove the shoulder immobilizer, depending on the severity of the injury. Whatever, you may do, use orthopedic aids in a proper way, use them how and for as long as the physician directs.