The Specialist:
As the system-wide chairperson of orthopedic surgery at Mount Sinai,
Dr. Leesa Galatz has been practicing as a shoulder and elbow specialist
for 16 years. Ninety percent of the surgeries she performs are for
shoulder injuries.
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| Dr. Leesa Galatz. |
Who’s at risk:
Rotator cuff disease is extremely prevalent, especially in older individuals.
“If you take 100 people off the street who are over the age of 60 and
who experience no pain, about 30% will have a rotator cuff tear and not
even know it. Not all tears are symptomatic,” Galatz says. “Rotator cuff disease is
so common because of the way our shoulders are made. These muscles are
in constant use, and our arms require a wide range of motion. So the
muscles and tendons of the shoulder experience a lot of wear and tear
over the years.”
The rotator cuff is
a cluster of muscles and tendons that keep the ball of the arm bone in
the socket joint of the shoulder. “There are four small muscles that
come from your shoulder blade to the outside of your shoulder, forming a
cuff or hood over the ball of your shoulder,” Galatz says. “The rotator cuff has a crucial role to play: it both stabilizes the shoulder and allows for a wide range of arm movement.”
