#10 Torn Rotator Cuff? Why You Might Not Need Surgery — Dr. Aneesh Garg, DO, CAQ

Your MRI shows a rotator cuff tear and your surgeon says it's time to schedule a repair. Before you commit to 6 to 12 months of surgical recovery, here's what Dr. Aneesh Garg, DO, CAQ learned during his fellowship at the Andrews Sports Medicine Institute — one of the top programs in the world: knowing the difference between who actually needs surgery and who doesn't is the whole game. Many partial and even some full thickness tears can heal without surgery. In this episode he breaks down how to tell which camp you're in, why function matters more than the image, and how a hockey player in his 60s avoided surgery on both shoulders using stem cells and PRP.Chapters:00:00 Should you actually have that rotator cuff surgery?00:49 My MRI shows a tear and my surgeon says I need surgery — is there anything else?01:04 Partial and full thickness tears that don't need surgery — what the Andrews Institute taught Dr. Garg04:35 Won't the tear just get worse if I don't fix it?06:03 The biggest mistake: rushing to fix the image instead of the patient07:02 Why an MRI alone isn't enough — dynamic ultrasound and what it shows07:44 Range of motion before the procedure predicts range of motion after08:22 Rotator cuff surgery is 6 to 12 months of recovery — and 44% still have pain09:31 Why do you see a surgeon first for a shoulder injury but not for a headache?13:05 How do I know if I actually need surgery or can treat this differently?16:49 Case study: hockey player in his 60s avoids surgery on both shoulders — tear visible on ultrasound, then gone19:01 What to do if you're sitting in a surgeon's waiting room right now20:18 Questions to ask before agreeing to surgery21:26 The big takeaway: a torn rotator cuff on MRI is not an automatic surgery sentenceLinks:Dynamic Athlete Homepage: https://dynamicathlete.com/Meet Dr. Aneesh Garg: https://dynamicathlete.com/dr-aneesh-garg/PRP Therapy: https://dynamicathlete.com/prp-therapy/Stem Cell Therapy: https://dynamicathlete.com/stem-cell-therapy/Shockwave Therapy: https://dynamicathlete.com/shockwave-therapy/Exomind: https://dynamicathlete.com/exomind/Emsella Therapy: https://dynamicathlete.com/emsella-therapy/The Regen Doc is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice or create a physician-patient relationship. Individual results vary. Candidacy requires a formal consultation at DynamicAthlete.com.