Living Healthy Chicago has recognized Dr. Anthony Romeo as one of the nation’s leading experts on the treatment of athletic injuries with an episode highlighting his services. Dr. Anthony Romeo discusses how he treats rotator cuff injuries for three different patients with unique cases in the episode — displaying his wide range of orthopaedic surgery knowledge.
In part 1 of the episode, Dr. Anthony Romeo helps Valentina Ngai, a Chicago area ultimate frisbee player, return to the field through shoulder surgery and rehabilitation. In the process, Dr. Anthony Romeo’s services re-ignite her passion for ultimate frisbee. Be sure to check out Part 2 and Part 3 to learn more about the life-changing effects of Dr. Anthony Romeo’s work.
An Unexpected Injury
Valentina Ngai was an active person who loved spending weekends on the field with her friends and husband. A dedicated athlete, Valentina competed on one of Chicago’s top ultimate frisbee teams. She and her husband loved keeping fit and staying healthy, and participating in team sports allowed her to channel her passions. One day on the field, Valentina leapt for a disc and fell hard on the underside of her upper left arm.
Not wanting to miss the remaining games, Valentina played through her injury to finish out the Ultimate Frisbee season. Though she had hoped the injury would resolve itself, she soon realized the problem wasn’t going away. She sought help from Dr. Anthony Romeo at Dr. Anthony Romeo, MD, basing her decision on Dr. Anthony Romeo’s reputation as an award-winning expert in the field of sports medicine.
Successful Treatment and Rehabilitation
Dr. Anthony Romeo diagnosed Valentina’s injury as a rotator cuff tear based on a physical examination and confirmed with MRI. After the diagnosis and a discussion with Dr. Anthony Romeo and his team, Valentina decided to have surgery to fix her rotator cuff tear. Her surgery was scheduled as an outpatient surgery, meaning she could go home the same day. Using a technique called Arthroscopy, Dr. Anthony Romeo was able to see and repair the rotator cuff tear they had identified via MRI with minimal injury to the normal tissues. This allowed Valentina to go home the same day and begin her recovery.
Valentina’s surgery was done in December, and by the following April she was back on the Ultimate Frisbee field. Valentina praised Dr. Anthony Romeo for how well he handled her surgery, but also for his forthrightness and his willingness to helpfully answer any and all questions she had. After a 12-week period of recovery, Valentina was able to regain full mobility of her arm. In her own words, Valentina said she “couldn’t have asked for a better experience.”
Contact Dr. Anthony Romeo, MD
The first step to addressing a shoulder or elbow injury is to properly identify the problem. If you’re experiencing shoulder or elbow pain, schedule a consultation with Dr. Anthony Romeo, MD.Part TwoPart Three
