36 days after successful rotator cuff surgery to repair 3 tendons, I have almost constant pain between my elbow and wrist as well as a burning sensation when I try to massage the pain. I never ever had any pain below my upper arm before. Is this part of recovery? or should I worry about nerve injury, I have been doing my passive exercises 2 times a day even when it takes a vicodin to dull the pain It is so awful that I just cry out, It feels like mini-electric worms crawling around under my skin and into the shoulder
Q: Is severe wrist pain unusual after rotator cuff surgery
Answers (2)
10/19/08 10:40pm
This new pain is not part of recovery from rotator cuff surgery. Sounds like a nerve injury because a burning sensation is involved. Nerve injuries can occur during a surgery. Sometimes the injury occurs because of poor positioning of the limb or body. For example, the "funny bone" (ulnar nerve) resting against a hard surgery table or retractor for long periods of time can lead to a crush injury. Diabetics are very vulnerable to nerve injuries during surgery. The nerves take time to heal and regenerate. Depending on the distance of the injury from the spinal cord, the regeneration can take months.
A neurologist would be able to assist you with a more accurate prognosis.
Dr. Christina Lasich, MD
6/ 9/09 11:14am
Gosh, Abigail's problem sounds very similar to what I'm experiencing after my rotator cuff surgery. About 4 weeks after my surgery, my hand began to swell. I have been in constant pain since. I was told to elevate my hand above heart level as often as possible. I do this when I'm sleeping...but it doesn't help much. I try to elevate during the day somewhat, but it doesn't help much either. It just swells again and gives me grave pain. It is so painful and stiff in my hand, fingers, and wrist, I cannot use my hand. It is very tender to touch. I did not have this problem to begin with after my surgery. What could be the problem?
3/31/10 8:47pm
Have you been able to determine if it was related to the surgery, or something different? I have a similar problem, having pain for the last 2 weeks in my hand and wrist, though it is a year after surgery for rotator cuf repair.
8/13/11 11:45am
I have the same problem with my hand, wrist & fingers. I had arthroscopic shoulder surgery June 1st of 2011 & it seems as though the pain & stiffness is getting worse. In the morning I can hardly move my fingers because they feel like there are pieces of steel in them. I am nearing the last phase of my PT and there are some exercises I can't do because of the pain in the tendons in my fingers & the stiffness & pain in my wrist.
I've mentioned this to the doctor & therapist many times over the past 10 weeks & all they say is "That's normal after surgery" The Pt has me doing some exercises for my hand but doesn't seem to be helping. Ugh!! In my opinion it isn't normal.
Most days my wrist & fingers hurt more than my shoulder. I had 5 different things done to my shoulder & supposedly nothing done to my hand. LOL- go figure. I'm thinking it had something to do with how they had my hand propped or hung during my surgery. I don't know but I sure wish I could find out a remedy so I could be recovering as fast with my hand as I seem to be for my shoulder.
Any insight from anyone would be wonderful 
Thank you! 
10/31/11 11:53pm
I tore rotator cuff at work, they repaired mine and hand keep swelling and fingers went numb so they did a CTR (corpal tunnel release) several months went by and hand still was swelling and still numb. So went back in and did another CTR, finally they went back in and did second MRI shoulder was STILL torn. Went back in 3 weeks ago and anchored muscle to bone and fingers are still numb. Now I am experiencing muscle lose on left side of peck muscle. However with 4 surgerys hand has stopped swelling however everything else has went to hell.
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I have sever pain in my wrist and it is swollen. My veins are puffy. I had rotator cuff surgery two weeks ago and this started three days ago getting worse each day. I have no pain in my shoulder or upper arm.