Handlebar help for shoulder injury
 

My wife's right shoulder is almost bone on bone and she really can't put much weight on it. The doctor says she's too young for surgery and told her to just limit how she uses it.
She'd like to do some biking with me despite her bad shoulder but the bars on my old Trek 820 she's using are not comfortable for her.
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...208fb4745a.jpg
What bars would be better for her? I'm thinking something that puts her more upright like the Northroad bars on my Raleigh Sports? I'd be open to putting different bars on my Specialized Sirrus or getting her a different bike.

I suggest having your wife test ride full upright bikes or even crank forward and let her decide. In my opinion, zero leaning forward, zero weight supported by hands/arms/shoulders is what will be needed. And my wife practices some very specific shoulder exercises taught by her Physical Therapist for her bum shoulder.

Edit: And oh, The doctor says she's too young for surgery and told her to just limit how she uses it. Huge red flag according to my Orthopedic Surgeon.

As someone who has had more than his share of time with Surgeons over a lifetime of sports injuries I spotted that part of the post as well. In my opinion there are a few injuries I had when I was younger and not experienced enough to advocate for myself where I wished I had pushed for surgery as early as possible to avoid years of time being compromised. Physical therapy is no substitute for just getting the issue fixed and I've never heard the phrase "too young".

Is the doctor an Orthopedic Surgeon and if so has she reached out for other opinions?

I agree with your post 100% however when I see the phrase "bone on bone" I'm thinking arthritis, not injury. Or an old, unrepaired injury that has been allowed to become arthritic like my right knee.
Physical therapy was very necessary for me after my spine surgery and took six months of it before my surgeon and PT would sign off on me returning to work.

Back on topic, the main gist of my interest in this thread is to see swampy's wife choose a well fitting bike that she will actually enjoy riding pain free.

I didn't mean for my post to sound like there are no situations where PT is helpful. After my surgeries PT was very helpful to get back to full mobility, though once I know what the end goal is I prefer to do my own programming.

I did have multiple situations though were the doctor I was seeing was reluctant to move things ahead to the surgery track and I was given useless PT to perform which just wasted time. It's a situational thing just like most things and the more you educate yourself the better you can advocate for yourself.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...41a41b5a71.jpg
I think that if this is setup for her now the frame is small for her purportions. Taller frame will raise the bars up, you already have a taller and short stem. Riser flat bars, taller stems may may your bike look clownish. You could try different shape of bars like Northroads, those will draw the hands back to and take pressure off the hands. If you can find a cooperative the parts won't cost much.

I look at the saddle angle, the nose down like that sort of puts more pressure to handle bars. Saddle forward a little can shorten reach, to forwards could be counter productive. I don't recall if the 820 is long in the toptube, some of MTB of the time had long toptube.

As a side note, those cranks may be a recalled item.

I don't mean this snarkily, but having had a shoulder replacement, I recommend a new surgeon before new 'bars. My shoulder was bone on bone for a long time before I got the surgery. I really wish I had done it sooner. I recommend considering PT first, because the stronger one is, the easier it will be to recover.

I urge your W to consider 1) asking a good surgeon for a recommendation for a good PT, 2) asking the PT for a recommendation for a PT whose especially good with shoulder rehab, 3) asking that PT for a recommendation for a good shoulder surgeon, shoulder surgeon, 4) getting the surgery from one of the top 3 surgeons recommended by the PT, 5) getting a new shoulder, 6) following the post-surgery PT regimen religiously. I hear there are good med schools pretty close to whether you go West, East, or North, and means good surgeons.:)

I think she'll find the effort very worth while, even though bionic shoulders wear out in 10-15 years.

She has recently switched PCs and she plans to start a dialogue with them about the shoulder, which will include a recommendation for a second opinion. If things result in surgery she still plans to wait until fall.
I appreciate all the medical advice but I was just asking about more comfortable bars as a temporary measure, assuming she will get things corrected long-term.

You might not be able to find any real comfortable handle bars. Other than putting some pipe insulation on them to make them real cushy they are what they are and most any isn't going to have enough difference to really help the shoulders.

You might play around with reach and change the stem length. Or just get another bike. One with a more sloping seat tube of less than 70° or one that has the BB further forward than is normal for a road bike or hybrid. This will let the rider sit upright in a more comfortable position and put less strain on the arms and shoulders. This won't be a bike to power up hills though if that is what you ride in, but it can be a comfortable bike if geared properly and one doesn't mind grinding away at slower speeds.

These are inexpensive and come in various speeds and configurations.
https://electra.trekbikes.com/us/en_...ownie/c/EB300/

A seat post with a lot of set back will also make the current bike have a BB further forward of the rider, but it will also put the bars further away. But depending on how the current bike fits, it might be something to try.

Shoulder surgery has become a specialty. Shoulder surgeons do shoulder surgery and nothing else. And they are really good at it.

Normal protocol in non-emergency cases is physical therapy under supervision of the surgeon before any decision about cutting or not cutting.

Your current doctor has some reason for not referring this case to the specialist. From here not possible to tell if that is a good reason or a bad reason. If “too young” is the only reason get another doc.

Soft tissue imaging does not work well for shoulders. Very normal for the surgeon to get inside and see more and different damage than what was expected. But they do not much do exploratory arthroscopy just because. The protocol is doctor’s exam and then PT. PT fails and then the knife. Occasionally PT works miracles.

This one sounds painful and there is no reason to expect it gets better by itself.

Your idea to try Northroads handlebars (Raleigh style) sounds good. Try it once. If it doesn’t help do not ride in pain.

Talking to my wife, she likes the idea of trying the Raleigh Sports to see if the position is better. If so, we'd be looking for something similar but newer with better gearing for the hills sround here.

Try a Moustache bar such as Soma Moustache 2. Don't forget to use some ergonomic hand grips and angle them so that her wrists are straight when she rides.

She would need to size up or get a more comfort oriented bike if she wishes to be any more upright than that. I'd start by at least ensuring that saddle is level and getting rid of those awful bars if getting a different bike is out of the question at this point.

Not sure if the Sirrus could be set up sufficiently to be comfortable for her, but I'd just as soon make some changes to it rather than mod my Trek.
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...56854b982c.jpg
the frame might better suit her as well, with the right seat, bars and stem extansion.

On the subject of Northroad style tourist handlebars, I might be wrong but it is my belief that STEEL handlebars, although heavier than aluminum, WILL NOT TRANSFER AS MUCH ROAD SHOCK, -VIBRATIONS- into the rider's hands, arms, and shoulders. There are probably nearly a hundred slightly different STEEL tourist handlebars from about 1925 to the end of the 20th Century that you can choose among. About thirty variations of that hundred are easy to find USED. Wald probably currently makes about five different variations today in STEEL, although the chrome quality isn't too good on these NEW current day Wald steel bars. There are very nice aluminum handlebars with nice tourist shapes, the Velo Orange Tourist does come to mind. Schwinn had a bunch of great steel ones in the old days, as did every other manufacturer. Essentially just look around and see what you might like for the shape and its rise and width, etc. You likely might find free ones from scrap piles, to use perhaps as a test mock-up, to see what differences that your actual handlebar choice needs to have.

SEE A FITTER! Seriously see a damn fitter stop with this let's' just guess with random bars and such. Find someone who knows their stuff and is doing a 3d fit and let's get her comfortable on a bike through actual science and some medical and body knowledge.

For those with shoulder issues, you may need to fully unload the shoulders and it's only possible with "pedal-forward" and Dutch/cruiser bikes. Additionally, you need the shoulders fully unloaded if you think of doing longer rides.

Like this, unbelievably comfortable! It's half-way to recumbent bike but still considered an upright bike. You should at least give it a shot. It's worth the money for those who do needs it.

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...7b68112a1b.pnghttps://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...3fddb05fe6.png

Bone on bone means damage has already occurred. Riding without pain would mean much less ongoing damage than riding with pain. Handlebars might do that much. Tendons once torn do not heal. The goal of PT would be to build collateral strength such that the joint could function well in spite of damage. Hopefully to build some muscle that would separate the bone on bone contact.

Shoulders are very complex joints. Think of the range of motion and how many different functions the shoulder performs. The many tendons involved are not that big. Shoulders are less amenable to PT than other joints.

My wife has bilateral biceps tendonesis. She is likely the only person on the planet who has had that done who has full range of motion and no pain. Both times she had surgery there was zero indication of badly compromised bicep tendons until the surgeon was inside. Once the biceps tendon is fully detached it is unlikely it can be reattached and it won’t be reattached well. No biceps muscle means the patient can’t feed, clean, dress themselves. That would have been a bad outcome. Instead we enjoy riding bike together.

Early treatment is always better. If your present doctor is unconcerned it might just be the injury is not all that bad. We will hope.

If you're looking to get a bike that is otherwise the right size and then make significant changes to the way the stem and handlebar is positioned, you didn't get the right bike! Notice how the stem on that Sirrus s already mounted as high up on the steerer tube as releastically possible. If you want the bars significantly higher than that, or a significantly short stem, more stem rise, etc etc. You would need an upright cruiser bike.

I'd say the Moustache bars for that neutral hand grip is a must, especially for those with injuries.

Keep in mind that those type of bars are usually more narrow, which places you more upright than standard 600mm+ handlebars found on today's flat bar bikes.

OMG! I'm just here as a newbie asking simple questions. If your answer is getting fitted for a new bike then say so, but I don't appreciate the condescending attitude and the use of CAPS! as though you're yelling at me.

No actually not that, I did use a small number of caps that is true but people keep giving advice that is not as good so I was more yelling at that. A fitter will help you figure out the optimal position on your bike for you I said nothing about getting fitted for a new bike but they might suggest that if you cannot actually get a reasonable position on various old used bikes that may not have fit in the first place. A fitter is there to help you get comfortable on your bike and adjust everything as needed. Just looking at one small area as the cause of the issue leaves a lot on the table may not actually truly help you and your condition. They will generally put you on a fit bike or sometimes your own bike (in some cases) and adjust everything in real time and look at your pedaling and ask you questions and help put you in a position that works for you and they may also suggest handlebars or stems or seat posts or something like that it is not out of the question. My fitter recommended pedal extensions and insoles in my cycling shoes and it helped immensely and I am a lot more comfortable for not a ton of cost but was never something I was thinking of (aside from maybe insoles).

I am sorry you felt like I was being condescending that was not my intention. I just really dislike the guessing games we put our bodies through when we have actual people who have studied fitting, some sports medicine and biomechanics amongst usually some other stuff who can really make us more comfortable and tell us more about our cycling and how we can be in less pain while doing it. If you have medical issues the worst thing to do is just guess and having someone who can help you avoid guessing is a good thing.

People need to quit reading emotion into what they read. It's probably nothing like the writer intended. And by far, a large percentage of us don't have the honed skills of a poet to manipulate words to express our true emotions when giving them. Much less do we want to take time to write a carefully worded and likely lengthier reply so as not to be mistaken as offensive.

My only take on the post was that @veganbikes was emphatic about what was being said. Nothing condescending about it at all.