Meet AJ
Age 16, from Elwood, IN
Enjoys shot put, discus, and farming
Injury: right shoulder labral tear
CIO Provider/Treatment: Dr. Brian Camilleri, right shoulder arthroscopy / anterior labral repair
AJ’s Story
AJ had a history of right shoulder pain, attributed to improper muscle development; however, he worked hard to retrain those muscles and had been pain free until October 2017. That is when the focus of the pain changed after falling during a high school football game. At first, AJ attended physical therapy and tried managing his pain with over-the-counter pain relievers, but the pain persisted. His mother, Kim, had been a previous patient of Dr. Camilleri and was very happy with her care, so she decided to schedule an appointment for AJ at Central Indiana Orthopedics.
Dr. Camilleri suspected that AJ had a labral tear in his shoulder. MRI results confirmed a tear and surgery was necessary to repair. At AJ’s two week post-surgery appointment, his shoulder looked excellent and was healing well. After a combination of wearing a sling and attending physical therapy, AJ continued to heal until ultimately he was able to get back to doing what he loved – shot put and discus.
Not only was Kim impressed with AJ’s recovery, she was impressed with the experience at CIO throughout his care. “Dr. Camilleri is one of the best physicians we’ve seen. He was always very personable, easy to get in touch with and communication was great,” Kim shared.
Kim continued to keep us up to date with how AJ was progressing after being released. Just five months post-surgery, AJ was setting records and had his best year throwing shot put and discus, including earning a spot at Regionals! He continues to be recruited by several NCAA D1 colleges for both shot put and discus.
“It is overwhelming and exciting and so very surreal,” Kim says. “All of this following an injury that we thought would end his athletics, at least his performance level. Words simply cannot express our gratitude to Dr. Camilleri and the whole team for the impeccable care and attention!”