Shoulder dislocations in people over 40 often tear the rotator cuff, not just the labrum like in younger patients. Get an MRI after a dislocation at that age to check for cuff damage. Early surgery for rotator cuff tears produces better outcomes than waiting months.
Shoulder dislocations don't just happen to young people on the field. In fact, they can happen to people who are mid-age or even above. The difference is those who have a dislocation over the age of 40 are more likely to have a rotator cuff tear at that time. So rather than the weak point being the capsule, the labrum that fails, the rotator cuff can fail or tear off the bone. So it's important, especially in people who dislocate their shoulder over the age of 40, to get an MRI to assess that function, because there's loads of data that shows that if somebody has a rotator cuff tear, and it's fixed earlier, they do better than having that fixed in a delayed manner months down the line. So it's different, leading to different need for assessment and potentially different need for treatment.
