00:00A SportsCenter top 10 type catch costs Yankees utility guy Jason Dominguez, at least what the team is calling a
00:07few weeks after an MRI revealed a low-grade sprain of his left AC joint.
00:12So in today's injury report, we're talking with Dr. Dennis Cordon, sports orthopedic surgeon at NYU Lane, going to see
00:20when Jason's shoulder will be ready to get back to the action and if it could actually affect him as
00:26a switch hitter at the plate.
00:27Doc, thanks for hopping on with us today. You know, when they go on IL, we talk about them on
00:33IR. So here's the video of the catch and the collision. Great catch as you can see here, but you
00:40can see him kind of take that blow to the head and the shoulder.
00:43The concussion test came back negative, which is a good thing, but he does have that low-grade sprain in
00:49his left AC joint. So a low-grade sprain means what? And he'll miss a couple of weeks, but could
00:58have that been a lot worse?
01:00So the AC joint, a little small joint on top of the shoulder, and it's held together by ligaments. So
01:07we grade those injuries according to the degree of injury to the ligament. So a low-grade sprain would mean
01:15that there could be some partial tearing of the ligament, not a complete tear.
01:19The joint is in a good position. And it's almost, in this scenario, more about symptoms will probably be the
01:26guide. As he's feeling better, they could absolutely start to progress his activity.
01:31It's a painful injury. So things like throwing, batting, just moving is very uncomfortable, especially early on.
01:40So, again, here, healing's going to be fine. That's not the issue. It's just about what he can tolerate in
01:46pain.
01:46Let's say a patient comes into your office with a sprain in the AC joint. Would you treat them the
01:54same or a little bit differently than the Yankees are treating Jason Dominguez?
02:00I'll tell you, one of these injuries where the treatment is the same, right, for your weekend warrior or your
02:05professional athlete, you know, once again, just like you said, it's all about the pain.
02:10And as soon as that athlete at any level can start to tolerate the activity, we typically let them go,
02:17return back to play, let them get out there.
02:20And especially if it's a mild grade sprain, the more severe ones there, then there's a difference about how we
02:27treat them.
02:27In the most severe form, there's even surgery. But in this scenario, this is just about time and getting rid
02:33of those pain symptoms.
02:35Would you inject one of your patients as well?
02:38If I had a high level athlete and a really important game, we would consider injection because it is safe.
02:46Of course, the most important thing is the safety of the athlete.
02:50But this would be one scenario where we would consider an injection prior to a game that would really help
02:55quiet down pain and symptoms.
02:58All right, Doc, appreciate your time today.
03:01Always a pleasure to see you. Thank you so much.
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