Is Shoulder Replacement Right for Your Arthritis? What Surgeons Assess Before Recommending It

The mug is on the second shelf. It has always been on the second shelf. Lately, though, reaching for it means turning sideways, lifting the elbow with the other hand and holding a breath while the shoulder grinds through the last few inches. At night the sore side stays off the pillow. Fastening a seatbelt has become a two-step maneuver. None of this is dramatic, which is exactly why it is easy to live with for years before anyone says the words joint replacement out loud.

When that conversation finally happens, most people want the same thing: an honest answer about whether they are a genuine shoulder replacement candidate, or whether they are being handed a large operation for a problem that might still respond to smaller measures. That question deserves a careful answer, because shoulder replacement is neither a last resort to be feared nor a quick fix to be rushed.

This article walks through what surgeons actually look at, what the operation does, who is usually asked to wait, and what the following weeks and years tend to look like, grounded in mainstream medical evidence rather than clinic marketing.

What makes someone a shoulder replacement candidate? The five things surgeons weigh

Surgeons rarely decide on a single finding. In practice, the assessment of a shoulder replacement candidate comes down to five overlapping questions, and the answer has to be reasonably convincing on most of them.

First, how bad is the arthritis on imaging? X-rays that show the joint space narrowed to a sliver, bone spurs around the socket and flattening of the ball of the humerus (the upper arm bone) describe a joint that has largely run out of cartilage. Mayo Clinic lists severe osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, arthritis after a fracture and long-standing rotator cuff damage among the main reasons the operation is offered.

Second, how much does it hurt, and how much has it taken away? Pain that wakes someone at night, that no longer settles with rest, and that has stolen dressing, washing hair or driving is treated very differently from an ache that appears only after a long day of gardening.

Third, what has already been tried? Most guideline pathways, including the NHS approach to osteoarthritis, expect a fair trial of exercise, activity modification, pain relief and often an injection before surgery is proposed. Skipping that stage is a warning sign, not a shortcut.

Fourth, what is the condition of the rest of the shoulder? The rotator cuff, the group of four tendons that hold the ball centered in the socket, largely dictates which type of replacement fits. Bone quality and any previous surgery matter too.

Fifth, is the person medically fit for a two to three hour operation under anesthesia, and realistic about recovery? A replacement is a project measured in months. Someone who cannot commit to rehabilitation, or whose heart, lungs or blood sugar are poorly controlled, may be asked to address those things first.

How shoulder arthritis wears the joint, and why it hurts the way it does

The shoulder is a ball-and-socket joint, but an unusually shallow one: the socket, called the glenoid, is a small dish on the shoulder blade, and the ball sits on it a little like a golf ball on a tee. That design buys the widest range of motion of any joint in the body. It also means the joint relies heavily on soft tissue, especially the rotator cuff, to stay centered.

Both surfaces are coated in articular cartilage, a smooth, slippery layer that lets bone glide over bone with almost no friction. In osteoarthritis that layer thins, cracks and eventually wears through. The NIH’s National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases describes the downstream effects: the underlying bone thickens and hardens, spurs form at the joint edges, and the lining of the joint becomes inflamed and produces excess fluid. Grinding, catching and a deep ache follow, along with stiffness that is often worst first thing in the morning.

Arthritis in the shoulder has several routes in. Age-related wear is the commonest. Inflammatory disease such as rheumatoid arthritis attacks the joint lining directly. A fracture through the joint surface can leave it uneven, so wear accelerates. When the rotator cuff tears completely and stays torn for years, the ball rides upward and grinds against the roof of the shoulder, a pattern surgeons call rotator cuff tear arthropathy.

Why does the route matter to a shoulder replacement candidate? Because each pattern damages different structures. Plain osteoarthritis usually leaves the cuff intact but may wear the back of the socket unevenly. Cuff arthropathy leaves a socket that is often fine but a shoulder with no working tendons to move it. The operation has to match the damage, which is where the choice of implant comes in.

What actually happens during shoulder replacement surgery

Strip away the technical vocabulary and the operation is a resurfacing job. The worn, roughened ends of the joint are removed and replaced with smooth metal and plastic components that restore a gliding surface.

The patient is asleep under general anesthesia, frequently combined with a nerve block, an injection near the nerves of the shoulder that keeps the arm numb for many hours afterward. The surgeon makes an incision at the front of the shoulder and works between the muscles to reach the joint. The arthritic ball at the top of the humerus is cut away and a metal stem, or in some designs a shorter stemless anchor, is fitted into the bone with a polished metal ball on top. If the socket is also being replaced, it is smoothed and a plastic liner is fixed in place. The muscles are repaired, the wound closed and the arm placed in a sling.

MedlinePlus describes the procedure as taking roughly one to three hours. Not every operation replaces both sides: a hemiarthroplasty, meaning half replacement, resurfaces only the ball and is chosen when the socket is still in reasonable shape or when bone loss makes a socket component risky.

The reverse shoulder replacement, discussed in the next section, turns the anatomy around: the ball is attached to the socket side and the cup to the arm bone.

Modern shoulder replacement is not experimental. It has been performed for decades, and the implants and techniques have been refined repeatedly. That said, it remains major surgery on a joint that lives or dies by soft tissue balance, which is why the choice of design, the surgeon’s experience with that design and the condition of the tendons around the joint matter so much to the result.

Anatomic vs reverse shoulder replacement: which one fits which shoulder?

The single most consequential decision after the decision to operate is which type of implant to use. It is driven almost entirely by the rotator cuff.

An anatomic total shoulder replacement copies the natural layout: metal ball on the arm, plastic socket on the shoulder blade. It depends on a working rotator cuff to hold the new ball in place and power the arm. Johns Hopkins Medicine describes it as the usual choice for osteoarthritis when the cuff is intact.

A reverse shoulder replacement swaps the positions: a metal half-sphere is fixed to the shoulder blade and a cup sits on the arm bone. This shift moves the joint’s center of rotation inward and downward, which lets the deltoid, the large muscle capping the shoulder, do the lifting that the torn cuff no longer can. Mayo Clinic notes it was developed for arthritis with an irreparable cuff tear, and is also used for certain complex fractures and failed earlier replacements.

Question surgeons ask	Anatomic total replacement	Reverse replacement
Is the rotator cuff intact and working?	Yes, usually required	No, or badly torn
Typical underlying problem	Osteoarthritis, some rheumatoid arthritis	Cuff tear arthropathy, complex fractures, revision surgery
Which muscle powers lifting afterward?	Rotator cuff and deltoid	Deltoid mainly
Socket bone requirement	Enough bone to seat a plastic cup	Enough bone to anchor a metal baseplate
Common trade-off	Socket wear or loosening over time	Some loss of rotation, bone notching below the socket

Neither is better in the abstract. A reverse implant placed in a shoulder with a healthy cuff sacrifices rotation for no reason; an anatomic implant placed over a torn cuff tends to fail early. The right answer is whichever design matches the tissue the surgeon finds on scans and in the operating room.

Who is usually a good shoulder replacement candidate?

Picture the person surgeons feel most comfortable operating on and a consistent profile emerges, even though there is no scoring checklist that makes the decision automatically.

Their X-rays show end-stage arthritis: cartilage largely gone, bone spurs, often a socket that has worn into a lopsided shape. Their pain is daily, frequently nocturnal, and no longer responds to the measures that helped a year ago. They have completed a genuine trial of non-surgical care, typically physical therapy, activity changes, over-the-counter or prescribed pain relief and at least one corticosteroid injection, and the benefit has either faded or never arrived. Mayo Clinic frames the operation precisely this way: for people whose pain and limited function persist despite other treatments.

Function loss is weighed heavily. Being unable to reach behind to tuck in a shirt, to wash the opposite armpit or to lift a kettle are the kind of everyday defeats that shift a surgeon from watchful waiting toward surgery, because they tend not to reverse on their own.

General health matters as much as the shoulder. Well-controlled blood pressure and diabetes, no active infection anywhere in the body, reasonable heart and lung function and a stable weight all lower the risk of complications. Not smoking, or being willing to stop well before the operation, improves wound and bone healing.

Finally, the good candidate understands what the operation is for. Shoulder replacement is fundamentally a pain-relieving procedure that restores useful, moderate motion. People who expect to return to heavy overhead labor or competitive throwing are set up for disappointment; people who want to sleep through the night, dress independently and garden without dread are asking the operation to do what it does best.

Who is not a good shoulder replacement candidate, and who is usually asked to wait

Being told no, or not yet, is common and usually well founded. The reasons fall into a few groups.

Active infection is the clearest. Any infection in the shoulder itself, or elsewhere in the body such as a urinary infection or an infected tooth, can seed bacteria onto the new implant, and an infected joint replacement is one of the hardest complications to manage. Surgery waits until the infection is fully treated.

Neurological problems that leave the deltoid or the nerves supplying the shoulder paralyzed take away the muscle power any replacement needs; without a working deltoid, even a reverse implant cannot lift the arm. Severe bone loss in the socket may make it impossible to anchor a component safely, although modern reverse designs and bone grafting have widened what can be attempted.

Medical frailty is weighed honestly. Poorly controlled heart failure, advanced lung disease, uncontrolled diabetes or a recent stroke raise anesthetic and wound risks. A surgeon may ask for those conditions to be optimized first rather than closing the door.

Then there is the large group asked simply to wait. Someone with clear arthritis on X-ray but manageable pain, who has not yet tried structured physical therapy or an injection, is usually offered those steps first. NHS guidance on osteoarthritis places surgery after a fair trial of exercise, weight management where relevant and pain relief. The same applies to people still smoking heavily, since stopping improves healing, and to those with unrealistic goals; a frank conversation about what the joint will and will not do belongs before the incision, not after.

Charcot joint, a rare condition where nerve damage destroys the joint painlessly, and some uncontrolled inflammatory diseases also sit in the caution column.

Is there a best shoulder replacement age?

People ask this constantly, and the honest answer is that surgeons think about age less as a threshold and more as a trade-off between years of benefit and years of wear.

The typical shoulder replacement patient is in their sixties or seventies, which simply reflects when arthritis usually becomes severe. There is no upper cutoff written into any guideline. Healthy people in their eighties undergo the operation, and the question at that age is fitness for anesthesia and the capacity to do rehabilitation, not the number on a birth certificate.

The more nuanced discussion happens with younger adults, broadly under fifty-five. Implants are mechanical devices, and Mayo Clinic notes that components can loosen or wear over time and may eventually need revision surgery. A younger, more active person places more cycles of load on the joint over more decades, so the likelihood of needing a second operation rises. Revision surgery is technically harder and generally gives less predictable results than the first.

That is why a surgeon may steer a forty-five-year-old with arthritis after an old fracture toward exhausting every non-surgical option, and may discuss designs that preserve bone, such as stemless or resurfacing components, so that a later revision has more to work with. It is also why rheumatoid arthritis, which can destroy a shoulder in someone’s thirties or forties, is one of the situations where earlier replacement is accepted despite age.

The pragmatic view: the right age is when the arthritis is severe enough, the alternatives have been tried, and the person’s health and goals align. Waiting too long carries its own price, because years of disuse weaken the cuff and deltoid, and a stiff, wasted shoulder rehabilitates more slowly than one that still moves.

Shoulder arthritis treatment options that come before surgery

Every credible pathway puts non-surgical care first, and not only as a formality. Many shoulders respond well enough to these measures that surgery is deferred for years or never needed.

Exercise and physical therapy form the backbone. Strengthening the rotator cuff and the muscles that steady the shoulder blade can improve how the joint tracks, and gentle range-of-motion work slows the stiffening that arthritis encourages. The NIH’s arthritis institute lists exercise among the most effective long-term measures for osteoarthritis in any joint.

Activity modification sounds like defeat but is often clever adaptation: moving frequently used items to waist height, using a long-handled sponge, splitting a heavy shopping load.

Medicines reduce pain and inflammation while other measures take effect. Acetaminophen and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, a class that dampens the chemical signals driving joint inflammation, are the usual starting points; the prescribing clinician weighs them against stomach, kidney and heart risks, particularly in older adults. Decisions about starting or changing any of these sit with that clinician.

Corticosteroid injections into the joint deliver an anti-inflammatory directly where the swelling is. Relief typically lasts weeks to a few months rather than permanently, and repeated injections are limited because steroids can weaken tendons and cartilage. Hyaluronic acid injections, designed to supplement joint fluid, have mixed evidence in the shoulder and are not routinely recommended in guidelines. Platelet-rich plasma and stem cell injections are marketed widely; current evidence does not establish them as effective for shoulder arthritis, and they should be described to patients as unproven.

Arthroscopic debridement, keyhole surgery to remove loose fragments and smooth rough edges, occasionally buys time for mild disease but does not help advanced arthritis and does not replace worn cartilage.

What is the downside of a shoulder replacement? Risks in plain language

Any honest explainer has to sit with this question, because the downsides are real even though the operation is well established.

The general risks belong to any major surgery: reactions to anesthesia, bleeding, blood clots in the legs or lungs, and wound infection. MedlinePlus lists these alongside the shoulder-specific problems below. Older adults and those with heart or lung disease carry more of this risk, which is why medical optimization beforehand matters.

Infection of the implant itself is uncommon but serious. Bacteria settle on the metal and plastic where the immune system struggles to reach them, and treatment can require removing the components, a course of antibiotics and a second replacement months later.

Nerve or blood vessel injury during surgery is rare. The axillary nerve, which powers the deltoid, runs close to the operative field, and damage to it can weaken lifting permanently.

Instability, meaning the new ball slipping partly or fully out of its socket, is the most frequent early complication of reverse replacements and can also follow anatomic ones if the cuff or the repaired front tendon fails.

Loosening and wear happen slowly. The plastic socket of an anatomic replacement can wear, and either component can loosen from bone over the years, producing returning pain and sometimes requiring revision. Mayo Clinic notes this as a reason implants may eventually need replacing.

Stiffness is the everyday downside. Some people never regain the last portion of overhead or behind-the-back motion, particularly rotation after a reverse replacement. Persistent pain, though unusual, occurs in a minority and is not always explained by imaging.

Fractures around the implant, either during surgery in fragile bone or years later after a fall, round out the list. None of this should frighten a suitable candidate; all of it should inform the conversation.

Shoulder replacement recovery time: what the first days and weeks usually look like

Recovery has a rhythm, and knowing it in advance takes much of the anxiety out of the early weeks.

The first day or two are spent in hospital or, for selected people, at home the same day. MedlinePlus describes a hospital stay of roughly one to three days for many patients. The nerve block wears off within the first day, so pain control transitions to medicines your team prescribes; how those are used is their call, not the internet’s. The arm rests in a sling, and a physical therapist starts gentle pendulum swings and elbow, wrist and hand movements almost immediately to keep the rest of the arm from stiffening.

For the first several weeks, the priority is protecting the repaired tendon at the front of the shoulder and, in reverse replacements, letting the joint settle. Mayo Clinic describes sling use through this early phase and a program of passive motion, where the therapist or the other arm moves the shoulder while its own muscles stay quiet. Sleeping semi-upright in a recliner is a common comfort trick. Dressing, showering with the wound protected and eating with the other hand become the daily workout.

Around the second month, active motion begins: the shoulder starts moving itself, still without weight. Driving is usually discussed only once the sling is off, the arm is controlled and no sedating medicines are being taken; your team will say when.

Strengthening typically arrives in the third month and continues for many months. Mayo Clinic is candid that full recovery, meaning the point where most people stop noticing the shoulder, can take several months, and stiffness and swelling often improve slowly right through the first year. Progress is rarely linear. A bad week after a good one is normal, not a sign that something has gone wrong.

What can you never do again after shoulder replacement?

The list is shorter than most people fear, but it is not empty, and it differs between implant types.

Repetitive heavy lifting above shoulder height, particularly with straight arms, is the activity surgeons most consistently ask people to give up. Every lift loads the interface between implant and bone and, in anatomic replacements, the plastic socket. Occasional lifting of moderate objects, a grocery bag or a grandchild, is generally fine once healed; a career of overhead construction work usually is not.

Heavy contact sports and activities with a high risk of falls onto the shoulder, such as downhill skiing or tackle football, carry a risk of fracturing the bone around the implant or dislocating the joint. Many surgeons discourage them permanently. Low-impact activities, including swimming, cycling, golf, doubles tennis, bowling and gardening, are commonly resumed, often with technique adjustments.

Reverse replacements carry an extra caution: certain combined movements, notably reaching behind the back while the arm is turned inward, as in tucking a shirt or fastening a bra, can lever the joint toward dislocation, especially in the first months. Some people adapt permanently by fastening clothing at the front.

Pushing up from a chair or bed with the operated arm is restricted early and often advised against long term, because it drives the ball hard into the socket.

Dental work and other procedures that release bacteria into the bloodstream deserve a mention. Guidance on preventive antibiotics for joint replacement patients has narrowed over the years and varies by individual risk; the correct approach is to tell your dentist about the implant and let the surgical and dental teams decide together.

The overarching principle is simple: the joint is engineered for comfort and everyday function, not for maximal load. Treat it that way and it tends to last.

What people often get wrong about being a shoulder replacement candidate

Misunderstandings cluster around this operation, partly because hips and knees are more familiar and people assume the shoulder behaves the same way.

Myth: it is a last resort you should postpone as long as humanly possible. Waiting has costs. Years of a painful, immobile shoulder waste the rotator cuff and deltoid, and a cuff that finally tears through can convert someone from an anatomic candidate into a reverse candidate with less rotation afterward. The right time is when non-surgical care has genuinely failed, not when the arm has stopped working entirely.

Myth: a bad X-ray alone means you need surgery. Imaging and symptoms often disagree. Plenty of people with alarming films have tolerable shoulders, and surgeons treat people, not pictures.

Myth: the new shoulder will be as good as the one you had at thirty. The realistic aim is a shoulder that does not hurt and moves well enough for daily life. Overhead reach and behind-the-back rotation frequently remain limited.

Myth: reverse replacement is the inferior option. It is a different tool for a different problem, chosen when the cuff cannot do its job. For that shoulder it is usually the better choice.

Myth: recovery mirrors knee replacement. Knees are walked on from day one; shoulders are protected for weeks and rely on months of therapy. The timelines and the daily experience differ.

Myth: injections of platelets or stem cells can regrow cartilage and avoid surgery. Current evidence does not support that claim for shoulder arthritis, and no guideline recommends them.

Myth: you cannot have both shoulders replaced. Staged bilateral replacement is done regularly when both joints are severely worn; teams usually operate on one side, allow recovery, then reassess the other.

Questions to ask your care team before deciding

A good consultation should leave you able to explain the plan to a family member in your own words. These questions tend to draw out the information that matters, and none of them should be unwelcome.

• Based on my scans, what condition is my rotator cuff in, and does that point toward an anatomic or a reverse replacement?
• Which non-surgical options have I not yet tried, and what would a fair trial of them look like for me?
• What is the specific goal of this operation for my shoulder: pain relief, motion, strength, or all three, and how much of each is realistic?
• What activities are you asking me to give up permanently, and which can I expect to return to?
• What are the most likely complications for someone with my health profile, and what would the plan be if one occurred?
• How long do you expect me to be in a sling, when will active motion and strengthening start, and how many weeks of supervised therapy are usually involved?
• What would you want me to change before surgery: smoking, blood sugar, weight, other medicines, a dental check?
• How many of this specific type of replacement do you and your team perform, and who will be looking after me on the ward and afterward?
• What happens if I choose not to operate now? Is anything likely to get worse in a way that changes my options later?
• How will pain be managed after the nerve block wears off, and who do I call if something worries me at home?

Bring a written list, take someone with you if you can, and do not be shy about asking for a second opinion on a big elective operation. Surgeons who are confident in their recommendation rarely mind, and a decision that feels fully yours is easier to live with during the harder weeks of rehabilitation.

When to call your doctor: red-flag signs before and after shoulder replacement

Most recoveries are uneventful, but a handful of signs warrant a same-day call to the surgical team, and a smaller set warrant emergency care.

After the operation, contact your team promptly if the wound becomes increasingly red, hot or swollen, leaks cloudy or foul-smelling fluid, or if the edges separate. A fever, chills or feeling generally unwell in the first weeks may signal infection and should not be watched at home. Pain that escalates sharply after a period of improvement, especially with a new clunk, a visible change in the shoulder’s shape or a sudden inability to move the arm, may indicate the joint has slipped or a fracture has occurred. New numbness, tingling or weakness in the hand or fingers, or fingers turning pale or blue, needs urgent assessment.

Seek emergency care immediately for chest pain, sudden breathlessness, coughing blood, or a swollen, painful calf, because these can indicate a blood clot that has formed in the leg or traveled to the lungs. MedlinePlus lists clots among the recognized risks of any joint replacement.

Before surgery, the red flags are different. Shoulder arthritis does not normally cause fever, unexplained weight loss, night sweats, a rapidly enlarging lump, or pain that is severe at rest and unrelated to movement. Any of those alongside shoulder pain calls for prompt medical review, because they point away from simple wear and toward infection, inflammatory disease or, rarely, something else that needs a different workup. Sudden weakness after a fall, or a shoulder that will not move at all, also needs to be seen quickly.

Whatever the situation, the treating team makes the call on what to do next. Their job is to be reachable; yours is to pick up the phone early rather than late.

Frequently asked questions

Who is not a good candidate for shoulder replacement?

People with an active infection, a paralyzed deltoid muscle or damaged shoulder nerves, severe loss of socket bone, or uncontrolled heart, lung or blood sugar problems are usually not offered the operation, at least until those issues are addressed. Those with mild symptoms who have not tried physical therapy or injections are typically asked to complete non-surgical care first. The treating team makes the final judgment.

What is the best shoulder replacement age?

There is no single best age. Most people having the operation are in their sixties or seventies, but healthy people in their eighties undergo it, and fitness for anesthesia matters more than the calendar. Surgeons counsel adults under about fifty-five carefully because implants can wear or loosen over decades, making a later revision more likely. Severity of arthritis, failed alternatives and realistic goals decide timing.

What is the downside of a shoulder replacement?

The main downsides are the risks of major surgery, including infection, blood clots and anesthetic complications, plus shoulder-specific problems such as dislocation, nerve injury, fracture around the implant and gradual loosening or wear that may eventually require revision. Some people keep a degree of stiffness, particularly overhead and behind the back, and recovery takes months of rehabilitation. Your surgeon should explain how these apply to you.

What can you never do again after shoulder replacement?

Most surgeons ask people to permanently avoid repetitive heavy lifting above shoulder height and contact or high-fall-risk sports that could dislocate the joint or fracture the bone around the implant. Reverse replacements add caution about reaching behind the back with the arm turned inward. Low-impact activities such as swimming, cycling, golf and gardening are commonly resumed once healed, following your team’s guidance.

What is a reverse shoulder replacement and when is it used?

A reverse shoulder replacement places the metal ball on the shoulder blade and the cup on the arm bone, the opposite of natural anatomy. This shifts the joint’s center so the deltoid muscle can lift the arm without a working rotator cuff. It is used for arthritis with an irreparable cuff tear, certain complex fractures and failed earlier replacements, according to Mayo Clinic and Johns Hopkins Medicine.

What are the shoulder arthritis treatment options before surgery?

Guideline pathways start with physical therapy to strengthen the cuff and shoulder blade muscles, activity modification, and pain relievers or anti-inflammatory medicines chosen by your clinician. Corticosteroid injections can ease inflammation for weeks to months. Hyaluronic acid, platelet-rich plasma and stem cell injections lack strong evidence for shoulder arthritis and are not guideline-recommended. Surgery is discussed when these measures no longer control pain and function.

How long is shoulder replacement recovery time?

Expect a hospital stay of about one to three days according to MedlinePlus, several weeks in a sling with passive motion, active movement beginning around the second month and strengthening from about the third. Mayo Clinic describes full recovery as taking several months, with stiffness often improving through the first year. Timelines vary with implant type, health and adherence to therapy, so your team’s schedule takes precedence.

Does a bad X-ray mean I need shoulder replacement?

No. Imaging and symptoms frequently disagree, and many people with severe-looking X-rays have shoulders they can live with. Surgeons weigh pain, sleep disruption, lost function and the response to non-surgical care alongside the pictures. Advanced arthritis on film makes you eligible for the conversation; it does not by itself make you a shoulder replacement candidate. The decision remains individual and rests with the treating team.

Can waiting too long for shoulder replacement cause problems?

It can. Years of a painful, stiff shoulder weaken the rotator cuff and deltoid, and a cuff that tears through completely can shift someone from an anatomic to a reverse replacement, which usually gives less rotation. Severe stiffness also rehabilitates more slowly. This does not mean rushing; it means surgery is best timed when non-surgical care has clearly failed rather than after the arm has stopped working.

Can both shoulders be replaced?

Yes. When both joints are severely worn, teams commonly stage the operations, replacing one shoulder, allowing months of recovery and then reassessing the other. Doing both at once is unusual because early rehabilitation relies heavily on the opposite arm for dressing, eating and pushing up from a chair. Whether and when to address the second side is a decision for you and your surgical team together.

References

• MedlinePlus: Shoulder replacement
• NHS: Osteoarthritis, treatment and support
• NIH NIAMS: Osteoarthritis

This article is for general information only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult a qualified doctor about your individual situation.