I am due to have a total shoulder replacement on May 12. At this time, my shoulder is very swollen and I ice it but the swelling continues to reappear and it is very painful. I do take pain medication but it only relieves the pain for short periods. My concern is the swelling and it is often very warm where it is swollen. Should I be worried? Could there be an infection? I have had 11 screws and a plate removed from my shoulder and it began to fall apart. There was a significant amount of arthritis that they scraped out. But right now, I am very worried about the swelling. Thank you for your time, Robin.
There is very high chance that it can be infection and so you need to go to doctor and do some blood work. If there is any suspicion and blood work shows some positive results then you need to take antibiotics as per your consultants advise.