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Initially, I thought the pain was tendonitis, but after a few weeks of rest, the pain returned and I knew it was more serious.
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Shouldering the
College standout Joe Savery is considered a prospect for the 2007 Major League Baseball draft. The Rice University junior has racked up numerous accolades in his college career including the 2005 Baseball America National Freshman of the Year, but his future in baseball came into question this past summer when he experienced a sudden sharp pain in his shoulder during practice. “Initially, I thought the pain was tendonitis, but after a few weeks of rest, the pain returned and I knew it was more serious,” Savery said. The Rice team physician referred Savery to Dr. David Lintner, the head team physician for the Houston Astros. Lintner, an orthopedic surgeon with The Methodist Hospital since 1992, has focused most of his practice on treating shoulder injuries. Lintner examined Savery and discovered a tear in his labrum, the rim of cartilage that surrounds the shoulder joint. The tear, which was caused by a bone calcification in Savery’s shoulder, is the most common shoulder injury in people from late adolescence through age 40. In athletes, the labrum wears down with repetitive overhead use, such as pitching, weight lifting or throwing. The injury also is commonly found in people whose jobs require heavy lifting, such as parcel deliveries; or those who work in industrial or chemical plants, where
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Joe Savery 20 VOLUME 4, NUMBER 2
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