Surgeon-written reference
Shoulder, elbow & upper-limb conditions.
Every page below is written from a working surgeon's perspective: what the diagnosis really means, how it is made, when surgery genuinely helps, and what to expect if it does. Reviewed and signed by Dr Joe Coory.
Shoulder
Conditions of the shoulder.
From tendon tears to traumatic fractures, the shoulder conditions Dr Coory sees most often in clinic.
Tendon
Rotator cuff tear
Partial, full-thickness and massive cuff tears — diagnosis, the question of healing, and when repair is the right answer.
Read moreTendon
Shoulder impingement & subacromial bursitis
Painful arc on overhead movement, night pain — what's actually going on under the acromion, and the modern shift away from routine decompression.
Read moreTendon
Calcific tendinitis
The "worst pain of my life" overnight onset — calcium deposits in the rotator cuff, and when barbotage or arthroscopic excision is indicated.
Read moreTendon
Biceps tendon problems
Long-head biceps tendinopathy, SLAP-related disease, and the case for biceps tenodesis over chronic conservative management.
Read moreCapsule
Frozen shoulder (adhesive capsulitis)
A self-limiting but exhausting condition. Natural history, hydrodilatation, capsular release — and the truthful answer to "how long".
Read moreStability
Shoulder instability
Dislocation, subluxation, Bankart and bone loss. The decision between arthroscopic stabilisation and Latarjet is the most important your surgeon will make.
Read moreLabrum
SLAP & labral tears
Superior labrum injuries, the changing evidence base, and why fewer SLAPs are repaired today than a decade ago.
Read moreAC joint
AC joint injury
Grades I–VI separations, AC joint arthritis and distal clavicle osteolysis — who genuinely benefits from surgical reconstruction.
Read moreArthritis
Shoulder arthritis
Glenohumeral osteoarthritis — the lifestyle, injection, anatomic-TSR and reverse-TSR conversation, in plain English.
Read moreArthritis
Cuff tear arthropathy
The end-stage state of a massive, irreparable rotator cuff tear — and why the reverse total shoulder replacement was invented for it.
Read moreTrauma
Proximal humerus fracture
The most common shoulder fracture in older adults. Most heal without surgery — the difficulty is identifying the ones that don't.
Read moreTrauma
Clavicle fracture
The collarbone — sling versus plate, midshaft displacement, and the modern criteria for surgical fixation.
Read moreElbow
Conditions of the elbow.
Tendon
Tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis)
Pain on the outside of the elbow with gripping — the natural history is the most important thing to understand.
Read moreTendon
Golfer's elbow (medial epicondylitis)
Pain on the inside of the elbow — overlap with ulnar nerve symptoms and the role of medial release.
Read moreNerve
Cubital tunnel syndrome
Numbness in the ring and little finger, weakness of grip — the elbow's version of carpal tunnel, and when surgery becomes necessary.
Read moreBursa
Olecranon bursitis
A swelling at the point of the elbow — when to drain, when to leave alone, and when to suspect infection.
Read moreHand & Wrist
Selected hand and wrist conditions.
Dr Coory's hand and wrist scope covers the most common nerve and bone presentations — carpal tunnel syndrome and the broken wrist. Conditions outside this scope are referred to a hand subspecialist colleague.
Nerve
Carpal tunnel syndrome
The most common compressive neuropathy in the upper limb — diagnosis, conservative management, and when surgery is appropriate.
Read moreWrist · Fracture
Distal radius fracture
The broken wrist — the most common adult fracture. When a cast is enough, when ORIF earns its place, and what recovery actually looks like.
Read more