By Clara on Thursday, May 08, 2003 - 03:11 pm:

If you have deja vu it is cos I put up this post yesterday but now it is gone!

So, I want to know if you can dislocate or sublocate a rib? When I wake up and have rolled on my front I feel like an elephant stood on me and my ribs are turned in really hard. They recover as the day goes on, but is there anything that can put them back more quickly instead of waiting?

By Hamfist on Thursday, May 08, 2003 - 05:23 pm:

Hi Clara

Hypermobiles most definitely CAN dislocate ribs (ribs are "held in" with cartilage, which is of course made of collagen) and most definitely can dislocate, in the so-called "normal" population this only occurs in severe trauma like car accidents when chests hit steering wheels etc. But in hyper mobiles it can occur from coughing, sneezing, moving wrong, sleeping and many many more ways (even just lifting your arms up. When your ribs are out they need to be put back in (by you or someone else) as you can puncture a lung from the rubbing on your lungs of the dislocated rib (not to mention the terrible terrible pain, this causes). Try talking to your doctor if you have one that understands Hyper mobility etc and see if he/she will explain about dislocating ribs.

The doctor may manipulate the dislocated rib to return it to its normal position. Manipulation should be done within a few hours, if possible. After that time, internal bleeding and displacement of body fluids may lead to shock. Also, many tissues lose their elasticity and become difficult to return to a normal position. Rib dislocations that you can "pop" back into normal position occur repeatedly.

Some say that if ribs can dislocate, it is still impossible to diagnosis. But just run your finger down along the spine until you come to one that's protruding and you have now made the dx!! They can become so loose all you need to do is put slight pressure on them and arch the head, neck, and back and they fall into place until the next time.

Ian (mercedes_nz@yahoo.com)

By Clara on Sunday, May 11, 2003 - 02:27 am:

Wow, thanks, lots of info there. My ribs alreadystick out at a ridiculous angle so that is probably why they dislocate so easily. Checking along the ribs as you suggested I find 2 are dipped inwards today where I fell asleep with my arm under my body. Also had a dislocated jaw this morning - this sleeping buiness is bad for me!

By Kelli on Friday, June 06, 2003 - 12:09 pm:

Hi I'm new to this whole hypermobility thing. I have always thought everyone was like this and didn't realize that my joints were not normal. I'm dealing with some major issues like both shoulders sublux constantly (sometimes 10 times a day), hip sublux which ultimately affects my knee, my ribs pop out in by back and the muscles spasm get so bad that the rib can't go back in. I can't even hold my arm in front of me for even a minute without feeling I'm trying to hold a 20lb weight! As for sleep....forget it! I can't lay on my back because L4/L5 kill me, my hips and shoulders sublux on my side and my ribs come out if I'm on my stomach. I'm totally frustrated and have finally made an appointment to see a rheumatologist. Hopefully he can help. I'm starting to wonder if I have Marfan Syndrom, but don't even want to think about that. I'm hoping not to be in a wheel chair at age 30, but I sure know that if I don't do something soon, then I won't even be able to get out of bed anymore. Just getting dressed is agonizing. I hope to learn more about hypermobility and what I need to do. I've tried PT, but the results weren't that great. Now I'm worse and I'm scared my only hope may be surgery. I'm trying to stay optomistic though, but without any pain medication or anything, I'm starting to get extremely tired and the pain is draining me mentally & physically. Thanks for listening!!! Any advise is welcome!

By Ian on Friday, June 06, 2003 - 01:06 pm:

Kelli
You certainly have Hyper Mobility Syndrome which is bad enough but I doubt from what you write if you have Marfans.
Not being "smart" here, but if you are carrying excess weight this is bad for a hyper mobile. You need to have good muscle tone to try to hold those joints together.
Resistance exercise is good but anything jarring is bad for you.
You can get support bracing for most problems including shoulders.

By Kelli on Friday, June 13, 2003 - 10:07 am:

Ian,

Thanks so much for your response. I don't think you are being "smart" for asking. I am tall and very thin, so thankfully having to get off extra weight is not an issue.

Have you ever had to have surgery for any of your hypermobile issues? Just curious as to what your results may have been good or bad. I know everyone reacts differently to different treaments, but I'm curious of how sugery may have affected you?

By Hamfist on Saturday, June 14, 2003 - 04:58 am:

Hi Kelli
I do not suffer from EDS or HMs - I simply have studied hyper mobility for some 40 years. But, having read many experiences there are some cases where surgery has helped but many others where it has not. Others have had great results from prolotherapy. But an essential feature is that good muscle tone will help control joints and if you really need to control joints you can get various forms of bracing for any joint and such bracing certainly helps.
Regards, Ian (mercedes_nz@yahoo.com)

By Hamfist on Saturday, June 14, 2003 - 04:29 pm:

Hi again Kelli
I am not sure exactly what your major problem is with your hyper mobile joints. You can have hyper mobile joints with actual joint pain that will not go away, or you can have hyper mobile joints that create muscle spasm trying to control the joints. If your joints were braced would you have joint pain?
Ian

By Myke on Sunday, June 15, 2003 - 07:33 pm:

Hamfist - what sort of surgeries are we talking about? I was thinking (for knees) the old style of ACL reconstruction using in-bone posts and rubber bands would be best - but do they do that anymore?

By Hamfist on Monday, June 16, 2003 - 04:10 am:

Hi Myke
All I know about surgeries is that many are not successful as in newsgroup answers. On the other hand some are and the shoulder responds reasonably because of its construction.
Ask around newsgroups to see who has had successful surgery. But, it is a last resort treatment in my view.
Ian

By Kelli on Monday, June 16, 2003 - 07:43 am:

Ian,

My major problem is I keep tearing the ligaments in my shoulders. I can actually feel when I have a tear because of the pain when it immediately happens. It's not actual "joint" pain. It is usually due to overuseage of my shoulder or a major subluxation. The same has happend now in my hip. I don't tend to "stop" and rest when I probably should and so I'm getting progressively worse. I know this has been my own fault, but when you're a mother with an extremely stressful job, I sometimes don't always take care of myself first. I know that needs to change and I'm working on it. I have no one to blame but myself! But the issue is the same, I'm in pain without much relief and I'm am trying to work on it. I'm seeing a Dr. this Friday to discuss my hypermobility and to see how much damage I may have done to my already very lax & injured ligaments. I will disuss the use of bracing when I see him. Thanks for your advice and help.

By Iam on Monday, June 16, 2003 - 08:04 pm:

Dear Kelli
You probably do not see it this way but you are fortunate in that you have a likely solution to your problem. You definitely need good muscle tone and you need to look after yourself. That is a requirement. Think of it this way - a broken down mother is little use to a child so get this your prime aim. Yes, you likely have done damage but do not do more!
If you want to mail me feel free - Ian
mercedes_nz@yahoo.com

By kate culligan on Thursday, March 25, 2004 - 08:30 pm:

My yoga teacher pushed my knees up to my chest when I was laying on my back. It felt good and then I heard a pop. Since then I've had alot of pain with movement, lifting, stretching. I don't know if I have a broken rib or I dislocated it. How do I find out? And what should I do if its dislocated? This has never happened before.

By Mike Uggen on Friday, March 26, 2004 - 08:51 am:

Barb forwarded your post to me for reply.

In answer to your question, yes, you most definitely can dislocate or sublux a rib.

The way to find out if you have a rib out is to run a thumb or finger down the edge of the spine and also along the edge of the sternum, same side of the body. If a rib is out, you will have tender spots, front and back, about one to two inches higher in back than in front because of the rib curvature.

There is an energetic technique in Polarity Therapy called Rib-Head Release that can be used to put it back in, basically with just a light to medium touch and holding it.

Check your ribs. If you think it is out and want to know how to do the release, let me know.