Aerobars and shoulder injuries

Yep.

I had rotator cuff surgery on my left shoulder in '99.  Part of that was to repair a type III bone spur, there.  Although my rt. shoulder doesn't give me the kind of pain I had in the left, I likely do have the same bone spur, there. 

If not for the aero position, allowing me relief, I couldn't ride more that 30mi. or so.  Aero position is HEAVEN to my shoulders.

Good luck.

I'm thinking the aero bars are more for position than weight bearing.  When I ride aerobars I usually have a little tone in my Lats.  It could potentially pull your shoulder joint into a more favorable position.

My right should was completely reconstructed in 2003 and is not held together by three kevlar bands.  I haven't had any issues with my shoulder when using aero bars, even over longer periods. 

That being said, I spent 2 years of doing rehab and then another two years after that before I started cycling, so my shoulder had a good 4 years of recover and strengthening before I even tried. 

three dislocations, some loose pieces of cartilage, and multiple muscles tears later and i have no issues with them either.

Recurring right shoulder problems from my rugby days.  Dislocates easily.  Can't throw a ball for more than two minutes, but can ride aero for hours.

Not exactly medical opinions, but it seems that we all have roughly the same experience?

Get the aerobars, but make sure you have a fitting done by an experienced person who is aware of your history.

Thank you all very much for your input about the aerobars.  I was thinking that they might actually be better than the more upright position.  I will make sure that I get them fitted by a professional who might know a little about shoulder injury stuff.  Sorry to hear that there are so many other shoulder problems out there.  Yet, we all still continue to plug away at triathlons---pretty cool