Dr. Downing carried out a complete replacement of my right shoulder on August 23; about 10 weeks ago. It would be an understatement to say that I have been delighted with the surgery and its outcome. I attribute almost all of this success to the care and surgical skills of Dr. Downing. My age (74 years) and condition as a Type 2 diabetic both presented risk factors. To minimize the effects of the latter, he held off surgery until my diabetes was under better control, as high blood glucose is associated with an increased risk of surgical complications. Fortunately, my surgery went smoothly, with no infections or other complications. Dr. Downing followed my recovery closely, and gave clear, explicit guidance on what I should and should not do during the recovery process. Having now completed about 8 weeks of physical therapy, with steady improvement in range of motion as well as diminishing pain, I plan to continue in what I presume are the later stages of recovery. As I said earlier, I could not be happier with the outcome of my replacement surgery.