Question
QUESTION: My mom 62 yrs, has inflammed collar bone at times, and is very painfull, do you know what may be causing this,

dignosed with diabetes, high blood pressure,

what can she do to have this not ocur, is it dangerous? , waht can her md doctor or specalist do for tests, treatment?



thanks,



ANSWER: HI Richie,

I doubt the collar bone is inflammed, the ligament at the A/C joint is probably inflammed since bone rarely get inflammed. Either way, the best way to knock it out is ice it and oral steroids short term such as a Medrol dose pack. She should feel better immediately. It is only dangerous if the reason is infection, then she needs Keflex which is an antibiotic, only a physician can tell for sure. Make sure she isn't running a fever. If she is, get her to the ER.

Dr. Durnin



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks, Do you know what may be causing this?  What type of test would a md physician need? What can she do her self to cure it?

Answer
I suspect her A/C joint or rotator cuff tear, even a labral tear. This should be easy enough to diagnose with a shoulder MRI, blood work if that's negative which should contain a C-reactive protein and ANA to rule out inflammatory disease. Like I said earlier, a Medrol dose pack and ice will give her immediate relief regardless of cause until she gets it diagnosed. The Medrol will have to be prescribed by her physician though since it is a steroid. If it is infectious, this will need to be addressed immediately as to not loose the arm or worse. I think it's just a ligament sprain but not examining her in person I can't say for sure.

Dr Timothy Durnin