Basejumper.com - archive

One I had never really considered - recently at ITW there was a accident caused by the jumpers shoulder dislocating during deployment. They were unable to control their canopy and despite an on heading opening landed on the talus. The jumper broke both legs and required helicopter extraction.

The jumper had had previous dislocations.

A note for any jumpers visiting the ITW: The departure of the rescue helicopter was delayed by other jumpers continuing to jump whilst it was on the ground under the exit - please suspend all jumping whilst the rescue helicopter is in the area.

Ouch , I never really though about something like that happening.

Did the jumper use one hand to steer and land the canopy?

Were the jumpers (that prevented the heli from flying in) aware that an extraction rescue was taking place at the time?

Shoulder dislocations actually do happen a lot. We have had quite a few in holland in skydiving, on exit, during climbout, in freefall. And yes, the right shoulder as well. Fortunately no serious injuries due to that incidents.

If you have had a shoulder dislocation in the past you should seriously think about that before taking a leap.

Ronald

Anybody who want to continue the discussion for an "Emergency pack job opener"?

Having had 3 (yes three) dislocations of my right shoulder (2 skydiving and 1 base jumping) the idea is somewhat appealing. However after much thought I don't think it's worth the extra complication (you also have to consider wing suit leg pouches).

I'd strongly recommend that everyone practices deploying with left hand and single armed canopy control.

I think I'm fixed now, but it's hard to tell. My experiences have been a sudden failure with no warning

What could be the cause of this dislocation in skydiving or base? asymmetrical shoulders position during deployment, hard opening or else..? How can one avoid sth. like that?

There can be many causes. The shoulder is a particularly complex and vulnerable joint.

Minor damage can lead to reduced stability making dislocation more likely. Each dislocation makes it easier for it to dislocate the next time. The ligaments stretch (or snap) and will never tighten up on their own.

There are various options for stabilisation procedures depending on exactly what is damaged. They can't really tell the full extent of the damage without an arthroscopy.

In my case the initial dislocation was on an already injured shoulder. My foot slipped while climbing around a wing strut and the sudden application of my weight on my shoulder (which was in a compromised position) ripped it from the socket.

Second time was while tracking on my back and sinking down by relaxing my arms. I was surprised how little it took to come out that time.

Third time was a hard opening, but shoulder was well and truly fucked by then.

I've found headup freeflying to be quite rough on a weak shoulder. Surprisingly a wingsuit despite putting huge loads on your shoulders restricts their movement to be more like a hinge and doesn't stress them that much.

To try and avoid dislocation, you could try strengthening your shoulder muscles and taking proper care of minor shoulder injuries. Warming up before jumping is probably a good idea too.

Luke, see you next weekend. Now that your shoulder is fixed, let's see what we can do.

Exactly. I have made a conscious effort to keep both of my shoulders strong after 2 dislocations. Keeping up with PT is a lifelong treat, but I haven't had one in years. And I still play hard. (knock)

I have had 2 as well, but after the second one I had surgery. Since then it has seemed mostly normal. Every once in a while it will act up and my shoulder will hurt for like a day. I decided that was a byproduct of the surgery.

I cant imagine how I could dislocate it again doing the type of jumping I do now in freefall. But I have thought about how it would feel not being able to pull. Scary

The shoulder joint is a ball-and-socket joint and is the most freely moving joint of the body.
The shoulder joint can move in multiple directions therefore it is less stable than other joints and is more susceptible to injury.
Dislocation of the shoulder joint is common and occurs when the top part of arm bone slips out of its socket.

The first shoulder dislocation usually is the result of:
1 poor warm-up (few push-ups)
2 not stretching prior to physical activity
3 weak shoulder muscles (rotator cuff muscles)
4 hand in throw away position
5 high external forces applied

There are four muscle tendons that connect to the shoulder that make up the rotator cuff.
Together these four tendons stabilize the upper arm bone to the shoulder socket and allow the wide range of motion in the shoulder.




The first dislocation stretches out the rotator cuff tendons and the joint capsule.
After the shoulder is repositioned it takes about 2 weeks for them to tighten up during wich the arm should be at rest if not immobilized.

The problem is that the pain is eliminated almost as soon as the shoulder is repositioned and the patient rarely if ever complies with the 2 weeks period.
Tricked by feeling no pain he never lets the joint capsule to heal and get tight again.
And this is the major cause of consequent dislocations!


So to summarize. In order to avoid your:

A. first dislocation
1 strengthen your shoulder muscles
2 stretch prior to physical activity
3 warm-up
4 don't make weird arm movements

B. consequent dislocations
1 wait (be patient!) for two weeks

2 then read A.

Now if someone was unlucky (or stupid) enough to already have multiple shoulder dislocations he should consider surgery as the last resort for tightening his ligaments (joint capsule).

The classical approach is the Buford arthroscopic method where you stitch the joint capsule with it self in the middle (effectively tightening it)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mavZS6cy-U


Alternatively there is the thermal shrinking method:
(faster, but not as strong as the Buford)


After surgery: read A.

Good luck! Heal well!