De'Von Thomas: Back in the Line of Scrimmage with Dr. Jonathan Chappell

De'Von Thomas started playing football in fifth grade. At 11 years old, his robust build and competitive spirit made him a natural for the sport. 

Year after year, he grew fierce and strong in his commitment to football, and it showed on the field. He made the varsity team in early high school, became the starting running back and began to dominate on the field. Numerous college recruiters from elite division 1 programs took note of his athletic ability. During his junior year of high school, De’Von received scholarship offers from 17 colleges and universities.

A First Down for Injury

On October 4, 2023, everything changed when a field event put his football career in jeopardy. De'Von was running a screen during a game, and after receiving the pass from the quarterback, he braced for contact with another player. He extended his right arm to push the defender away and gain more yardage, but his arm was forced back and away from his body as he collided with the defender. At that moment, De’Von felt a strange sensation in his shoulder.

De'Von recalls, "I could not feel anything. My arm dropped and went numb for a couple seconds. Then it popped back in." 

De'Von continued to play through the discomfort, but after the game, when the pain persisted, he was evaluated. X-rays did not show any damage, and he was diagnosed with a subluxation or dislocation event. Given it was his first dislocation, he entered a physical therapy program. The goal was to strengthen the muscles around the shoulder to prevent additional dislocation events. Unfortunately, the pain persisted for several weeks despite the physical therapy.     

"Anytime I'd move the front of my arm between my shoulder and torso," De'Von shares, "I had pain."

A Second Down for Injury

De'Von continued to practice and play football, hoping the pain would eventually subside. Unfortunately, on December 1, he experienced a second shoulder dislocation during a playoff game. Again, with the help of his trainer, he was able to reduce the shoulder pain and finish the game. 

Thereafter, he and his family returned to urgent care on December 2 where he received magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of his shoulder to assess the structural damage.

Lauren Duffy, an employee of Wake Orthopaedics, and friend of De'Von and his family, mentioned the injuries to Jonathan Chappel, MD, a sports medicine orthopaedic surgeon and shoulder specialist. Dr. Chappell offered an appointment to De'Von and on January 10, 2024, they met and he reviewed the MRI results during the appointment. 

Dr. Chappell told De’Von that the two shoulder dislocations tore cartilage in the shoulder and created a bone bruise on the back of the humerus. Specifically, De'Von was diagnosed with a right shoulder labral tear and Hill-Sachs lesion. Dr. Chappell explained to De'Von that he would need an arthroscopic shoulder surgery called an anterior capsulorrhaphy to repair the labrum and tighten the ligaments used to stabilize his shoulder. It was scheduled for February 2 at WakeMed Raleigh Campus. 

De'Von says, "Dr. Chappell laid out the pros and cons of surgery, and obviously the pros outweighed the cons. He didn't pressure me. I thought about it and figured since I didn't want to make certain moves in football and not perform at my best, I should strongly consider the surgery and talk to my parents about it. They both agreed surgery was best."

A Field Goal for Surgery

On February 2, 2024, Dr. Chappell performed De'Von's anterior capsulorrhaphy at WakeMed Raleigh Campus. Multiple anchors were placed in the glenoid (socket of the shoulder joint), and sutures in the anchors were used to pull the torn cartilage back into the correct position. This surgery allowed the tissue to heal back to its anatomic position and retention the ligaments stabilizing De’Von’s shoulder. The surgery went well.

De'Von shares, "I was feeling a little nauseous and out of it when I awoke from surgery, but I didn't really feel any pain."

Dr. Chappell was pleased that the surgery was a success and gave De'Von a recovery window of six months, which would be perfect timing for him to return to football during his senior year.

De'Von was elated for the news and immersed himself in physical therapy at a location in Wake Forest. He was relieved for his anticipated return to the game he loved.

"My junior year was the peak of my college activities. I was being heavily recruited with many offers. College recruiters were asking me to visit campus, trying to get me to commit."

Back in the Football End Zone 

De'Von applied his work ethic to his shoulder rehabilitation. Over time, his range of motion improved, and he began working on strength training. After a few months, he was back in the weight room lifting weights in preparation for the season.  

De'Von smiles, "Dr. Chappell couldn't believe how quickly I rehabbed. My range of motion was amazing."

Dr. Chappell explains, "As with all contact athletes who have shoulder instability, I wanted to ease De’Von back into football activities. Football players are defined as contact athletes because of the number of collisions between players during a game. Surgeries to repair shoulder instability have a very high success rate with fewer than five percent of patients experiencing additional dislocations. Contact athletes, due to the forces to the shoulder, have a higher rate of failure. I wanted to make sure De’Von was fully rehabbed before being tackled or hit while playing."

De'Von admits, "I took a little time returning because I wanted to make sure I felt 100 percent ready. I knew I wouldn't be able to enjoy it if I didn't feel fully prepared."

Now in his senior year, De'Von is playing better than ever and has whittled his college choices down to two where he has been provided full athletic scholarships and the opportunity to earn a degree in electrical engineering. 

A Win with a Great Surgeon

Thinking of the support he received from Dr. Chappell, De'Von explains, "In conversing with Dr. Chappell, from the very first moment, he described the injury to me and carefully explained the human anatomy of that area. He did it in a simple and straightforward way that I could easily understand. He is a good doctor and really guided me in a helpful way." 

About Jonathan Chappell, MD

Dr. Jonathan Chappell is a board-certified and fellowship-trained orthopaedic sports medicine surgeon. He has experience in all knee and shoulder arthroscopic procedures including ACL reconstructions, rotator cuff repair, shoulder stabilization and cartilage work. He also has a special interest in total shoulder arthroplasty, revere total shoulder arthroplasty and fractures around the shoulder.

Dr. Chappell has been taking care of high school, collegiate and professional athletes for over 15 years. He has performed shoulder and knee surgery on local high school and college athletes throughout the local community. He was the medical director and team orthopedic surgeon for the North Carolina Football Club and NC Courage professional soccer teams for 15 years. In the past he has worked with medical providers for the Los Angeles Lakers, Kings, Galaxy and Anaheim Ducks.

Born and raised in Mooresville, North Carolina, Dr. Chappell now resides in Raleigh with his wife and children where he enjoys tennis, pickleball, golf, snowboarding and soccer.

About Wake Orthopaedics

For over two decades, Wake Orthopaedics has been serving the Triangle community with comprehensive orthopaedic care dedicated to help patients regain their mobility and restore their quality of life. With specialties and expertise in conditions of the bones, muscles and joints, our team of board-certified and fellowship-trained specialists utilize progressive treatments and state-of-the-art technology to care for everything from shoulder injuries and fractures to ACL injuries and arthritis. In addition to traditional orthopaedic services, Wake Orthopaedics provides Orthopaedic Urgent Care access on nights and weekends, physical and occupational rehabilitation services and sports injury prevention. Wake Orthopaedics is a WakeMed Physician Practice.