Tommy John Surgery Restores Mobility in Elbow Patients

Tommy John was a pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team. In the summer of 1974, he was unable to pitch because of an injury to his elbow. Until that time, this particular injury ended the career of baseball pitchers.

The ligament Tommy John injured was the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) on the inside of his elbow joint. Patients with injury to this ligament have pain and discomfort on the inside of the elbow and also have instability in the elbow joint.

Tommy John surgery, developed by Dr. Frank Jobe in 1974, is a surgical procedure to reconstruct the UCL using a tendon from the forearm. The tendon is used to recreate the damaged ligament and improve the stability of the elbow joint.

For Sierra Pacific Orthopaedic & Spine Center specialists Steven T. Thaxter, M.D., and Toby R. Johnson, M.D., Tommy John surgery offers a real benefit for active patients, especially pitchers. “For patients with UCL injuries, this surgery typically allows them to return to an active, pre-injury lifestyle,” they say, continuing, “And this is really what the field of orthopaedics is all about, making people better.”

Today, Tommy John surgery can be used to extend the career of many baseball pitchers; the success rate following this surgery is roughly 85 percent.

For more information on Tommy John surgery, or to schedule an appointment with our elbow specialists, contact Sierra Pacific Orthopaedic & Spine Center at (877) 666-6080.