toronto options for weekend bursitis treatment

February 21, 2009 12:51 AM

What options do I have for what seems like a sudden acute bursitis attack in my right shoulder? I'm in Toronto and have an appointment for my first cortisone shot Tuesday (I may be able to successfully beg a shot on Monday), but I don't know if I can wait that long for my clinic to open again. It hurts a lot and I can't even sleep through the night. It's been getting worse since waking up Friday morning, not better.

lefthanded and lower case from here on, sorry.

have been under treatment for LEFT shoulder since fall (rotator cuff, tightness, referred pain and mild bursitis) which has limited m y cycling but is getting better.

my RIGHT shoulder has been mildly sore at point of shoulder for months, and ultrasound in december showed some very small bursa inflammation . it has been slightly sore on waking for a couple of days, but after sleeping in an awkward, constrained position thursday night, i woke up bilaterally stiff and sore friday. while my left shoulder was soon fine, my right shoulder got worse throughout the day.

i'm limiting computer work (full day of work friday probably not a good idea), i've been icing nearly constantly and maxing out advil, and trying GENTLY to keep up range of motion to avoid stiffness, though that might be a mistake -- i don't know.

after three hours of careful sleep, i've woken up and can barely move my arm without stabbing pains. more ice. more advil in another 2 hours.

emerg? st joe's says they don't do cortisone shots, and best i could get would be meds. naproxen, if i get it, is somewhat stronger than advil, but i don't know if god knows how many hours in emerg is worth the trade-off.

i'm trying to find any sports med clinics open saturday, and have emailed these people to see if i can get an appt. are there any other places i can try that are open saturday?

i'm afraid that the longer i leave this, the worse it will get. please help me figure out what to do.

posted by maudlin to health & fitness (5 comments total)

Can't you get naproxen over the counter? You can here in the US--any pharmacy, right on the shelves.
posted by MrMoonPie at 7:49 AM on February 21

nope, prescription only in ontario. i'm trying to find a local walk-in clinic that is open today.
posted by maudlin at 7:50 AM on February 21

I'm so sorry for your pain. I can't help with this weekend, but when you go in on mon/tues ask for an MRI if your clinic will provide it. It might actually be a tear. My mom had the same pain you're describing, went through two rounds of cortisone shots before they would take a better look. In the mean time her shoulder was getting more injured. Even the MRI didn't show the full extent of her tear. Good luck and I hope you feel better.

p.s. is codine legal over the counter there?
posted by CoralAmber at 8:13 AM on February 21

You can get Tylenol 222s OTC if you ask the pharmacist. That may not be strong enough. Try the Doctor's Office clinics. They are open on Saturdays and Sundays and are pretty fast. Hope you feel better.
posted by urbanette at 12:07 PM on February 21

Thanks for all the advice. I was away on some important meetings (asking everyone there to PLEASE not shake my hand!) most of the day Saturday, so I didn't get to read most of your replies until that evening. Ice and Advil seemed to help a lot, even without getting Naproxen, so I may even cancel the cortisone shot on Tuesday.

But I've added The Doctor's Office to my address book, as it's been tough to find walk-in clinics open on the weekend, so I'll have that resource for next time.
posted by maudlin at 9:39 PM on February 22