[DaveC]

What's up with this?Some people who get abdominal surgery get shoulder pain?OK it's because i have shoulder instability/injury.I was wondering if it could mess up my colon.

 

[Kathleen M.]

Well the pain nerves around the gall bladder can refer pain up to the shoulder blade on that side, but don't know about other abdominal regions making the joint go bad or anything.The pain in the shoulder blade doesn't damage the shoulder as far as I know. Just the way the nerves are wired can make the pain show up in a place other than where it is generated. Usually gall bladder surgery makes that go away (but I would think some of the surgery pain could travel up the same nerves if it is in the same location, the nerves each cover a pretty wide area in that part of the body compared to something like your hand.Physical stress from any painful injury can make other illness worse as stress is stress and whatever in your body react to the stress doesn't care what caused the stress. It doesn't pick and choose and only respond to stress from the job (for example) but not from your family or the weather or lack of sleep, or pain.

 

[DaveC]

Pain in the shoulder following laparoscopy:My link

 

[Kathleen M.]

I don't think that pain is permanent or damages the shoulder joint.It sounds like the same pain nerve track as the gall bladder pain hurting up in the shoulder blade area.I don't think the pain track goes the other way. Never heard of someone who just had actual shoulder damage start feeling pain in their gall bladder area.Referred pain doesn't damage the area the pain is referred to. It is just a quirk of the nervous system.