Hello, I'm Dr. Dongkyu Lee, a board-certified orthopedic surgeon. So many patients have been suffering from shoulder calcific tendinitis for a very long time. Many of the patients who come to see me have received dozens of injection treatments and dozens of extracorporeal shockwave therapy sessions over the years, yet their pain keeps recurring or never improves. When the calcification is too large or too hard, no amount of injections or shockwave therapy will effectively treat it. Extracorporeal shockwave therapy commonly used works by improving blood flow through cellular vibration and promoting tissue healing by encouraging calcification absorption at the cellular level. When the calcification is too large or hard, shockwave therapy alone is virtually incapable of eliminating it. Some patients tell me they received an injection that "dissolves" the calcification, but no such injection exists. What likely happened was a steroid injection into the calcification. The anti-inflammatory effect of the steroid reduces the inflammation caused by the calcification, thereby reducing pain. Naturally, since the calcification itself doesn't go away, the pain recurs repeatedly. Patients who have experienced this know exactly what I'm talking about. The treatment for calcific tendinitis is to remove the calcification. It's a very simple principle. Calcific tendinitis causes tremendous pain because the calcification triggers inflammation, which increases pressure within the tendon. Physically removing the calcification provides a fundamental cure for calcific tendinitis. So how should the calcification be removed? Does it require surgery? Calcific tendinitis can be treated non-surgically. Calcification crushing and aspiration can remove the calcification without surgery. Calcification crushing and aspiration is a procedure that uses a specially designed guide and drill to crush the calcification and then aspirate it out — all non-surgically. https://blog.naver.com/9690067/223417573353
🔗 https://blog.naver.com/9690067/223417573353Today's case is another patient who suffered from calcific tendinitis for years and received numerous injection and shockwave treatments. They came to see me saying they simply couldn't endure it any longer. This patient traveled all the way from the countryside and complained about why there aren't any hospitals in their area that offer this treatment — everywhere just recommends surgery. They explained that the calcification was causing so much pain, but they couldn't undergo surgery due to their work situation. They wanted non-surgical treatment, but couldn't find anywhere that offered it, so they kept getting injections and shockwave therapy. Calcific tendinitis can be treated non-surgically, without surgery. Let me check the patient's condition.
On the X-ray, a large calcification was observed in the posterior region of the rotator cuff. I used ultrasound to check the size and characteristics.
A large calcification measuring 1.76 cm wide and 1.06 cm tall was observed, with a hard consistency that did not allow ultrasound penetration. With hard calcification like this, extracorporeal shockwave therapy simply cannot treat it. Furthermore, it cannot be removed by simple syringe aspiration alone. Calcification crushing and aspiration works by inserting a guide into the calcification and crushing it internally, which means even hard calcifications can be removed. A brachial plexus nerve block was administered to anesthetize the shoulder area. Sedation was also provided to eliminate any fear or anxiety about the procedure. Using ultrasound guidance, I precisely inserted the guide into the calcification and crushed it using a specially designed drill. After crushing, the fragmented calcification was aspirated out using saline solution.
In the video, you can see the crushed calcification being aspirated out through the syringe like powder. Even with hard calcification like this, the specially designed drill effectively crushes it, making removal possible.
Here is the syringe photo after the calcification was removed. Once the calcification is gone, the space it occupied within the rotator cuff remains empty. This space needs to regenerate into healthy tendon tissue for the rotator cuff to fully recover. That's why, immediately after removing the calcification, I also administer tissue-healing injection therapy during the same procedure, so tendon regeneration begins at the same time the calcification is removed. After the calcification crushing and aspiration, a follow-up X-ray was taken.
Looking inside the blue circle, the calcification that was previously visible has completely disappeared. The calcification has been almost perfectly removed.
Comparing the before and after images makes it even more evident that the calcification was successfully removed. The patient was overjoyed that years of suffering from calcific tendinitis could be resolved with just a single procedure. They said they couldn't believe they could finally live without pain. Calcific tendinitis is clearly treated by removing the calcification. However, simple injection therapy or shockwave treatment alone fails to resolve the issue in the vast majority of cases. At the same time, surgery is too demanding, and many patients can't afford the time for it. Calcification crushing and aspiration is a procedure that treats calcific tendinitis non-surgically. A single procedure can resolve calcific tendinitis. Because it's performed under regional anesthesia, treatment can be completed the same day, and you can return to your daily routine the very next day.
Stop suffering from calcific tendinitis. One procedure is all it takes to free you from pain. Dr. Dongkyu Lee
