A Baseball Players Best Friend: Tommy John Surgery

Brittany Ludwig

What is Tommy John?

Tommy John surgery is the replacement/reconstruction of the Ulnar Collateral Ligament using a tendon taken from another part of the body. The Ulnar Collateral ligament is located on the inside of ones elbow and can tear when extreme force and stress is applied.

The recovery time for this process averages at about a year. The rehabilitation process is the hardest part of the procedure and requires determination and perseverance.
http://universityorthopaedic.com/specialties/5-tommyjohn-surgery.html

The procedure. The first step of the procedure is obtaining a tendon

from another part of the body. In my boyfriend, Wills case, they took a larger tendon from his knee. Once the graft is taken, they then cut a three inch incision along the inside of the arm, making the torn ligament visible. They will then drill small holes through the ulna and humerus bones creating pathways for the new tendon.

After this, they will loop the new tendon through the tunnels in a figure eight pattern. For extra strength, they will then attach any part of the torn ligament that is still there, back to the new UCL.

Road to Recovery.
After the procedure is over, the patient is given stitches, a bunch of pain medications, and a sling. They must keep their arm at a 90 degree angle for two weeks to allow for healing. Once the stitches are taken out, the sling is removed and they are given a flexion brace which allows doctors and therapists to set a specific degree of flexion depending on progress being made.

For the next month, the patient will go to therapy and work on shoulder strengthening exercises as well as stretching out the new UCL.
Small steps are taken and eventually the patient is able to start strengthening their elbow, but very slowly. Overhead throwing activities are prohibited until the patient shows signs that they are ready. In about four months from now, they should be alright.

What Stood Out?

The thing that surprised me most when doing this inquiry paper, was the long recovery period. The thing that intrigued me the most was the actual process itself and how they reconstruction worked. The thing that disturbed me the most was actually part of the rehabilitation because the scar must be massages and scar tissue must be popped! and of course I had to help with that.