Bertrand Berry outstretched his left arm as he tried to rush around Seattle’s monster left tackle Walter Jones in a game in 2005, and as he did, Berry felt a snap in his chest.
His pectoral muscle had torn, and the tendon that attaches the muscle to the arm bone had ruptured.
So Berry, who played for the Broncos from 2001-03 and recently retired after 12 seasons, can fully empathize with Denver’s star pass rusher Elvis Dumervil, who suffered the same injury in a training camp practice Wednesday evening.
“I feel bad for Elvis. I know he was looking for a big year,” said Berry, who added he has a soft spot for Dumervil since Dumervil wears his old No. 92.
Berry had his pectoral muscle surgically repaired by renowned orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews within days and missed the remaining eight games of the season for the Arizona Cardinals. He made a full recovery and said he had no long-term effects from the injury once he completed the rehabilitation process, which took several months.
“He should be the same Elvis of old,” Berry said. “It is not a career- changing injury.”
Pectoral injuries are most common in men who lift heavy weights, and the injury is fairly easy to diagnose, said Dr. Wayne Gersoff, a surgeon at Advanced Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Specialists in Denver.
“The biggest thing is when it happens, it hurts like heck,” Gersoff said. “There’s a lot of bleeding and black- and-bluing around there.”
The initial injury is often visible to the naked eye because the muscle will ball up and “will look like a big lump in the breast,” he said. An MRI would determine how severe the tear is and if the tendon is ruptured. If so, the injury almost always requires surgery.
“It is probably better to do surgery sooner rather than later,” Gersoff said. “You want to move to the healing stage as soon as possible.”
Gersoff said the rehab time for a surgically repaired pectoral muscle is at minimum three months. Gersoff said the surgery itself is low risk, but that rehab can be tricky because of the need to immobilize the area.
“You have to allow nature to take its course, and sometimes the simple act of coughing or laughing hard contracts that muscle and tendon,” Gersoff said. “You’re always at risk of doing something.”
Besides Berry, other NFL players have returned from a similar injury. Raiders quarterback Bruce Gradkow- ski had surgery to repair his left pectoral muscle in April and is participating in training camp. Seattle linebacker Lofa Tatupu is back with the Seahawks after missing most of last season with the injury.
“The rehab isn’t going to be as slow long term,” Berry said. “The first part is getting a range of motion and the mobility back, and then doing the things he’s always been able to do.”
Lindsay H. Jones: 303-954-1262 or ljones@denverpost.com
Course of treatment
Members of two NFL medical staffs were contacted Thursday to outline the general rehab from a torn pectoral muscle. The timetable is what Elvis Dumervil would face if he has surgery, as expected, to repair the muscle and tendon.
The most common type of injury is when the pectoral tendon that connects the muscle — pectoralis major — to the upper arm bone tears and has to be reattached. Or there could be a tear of the muscle tissue that has to be repaired.
Sometimes the shoulder capsule — the muscles around the shoulder joint — is damaged as well.
Often there is heavy bruising in the chest and significant pain.
THE RECOVERY
* After surgery, there is a period of two to four weeks when the injury is “protected” and the player cannot use the arm.
* At roughly Week 4, the player begins gentle exercise and gradually increases the activity level over the course of about three months.
* Return to play usually is between four to six months.
Jeff Legwold, The Denver Post
