Brown suffered a fracture to his upper arm – a tuberosity fracture of the humerus – after falling heavily in a tackle with Vince Grella in the first half of New Zealand’s match against Australia at the MCG on Monday night.
During yesterday’s surgery he had three screws inserted into the bone to secure the fracture.
“The surgeon has indicated that the procedure went very well,” Dr Celeste Geertsema says.
“Tim is expected to be released from hospital within the next few days and will start a rehabilitation program soon after. Whilst the technical aspects of his surgery have been successful, it is still too early to comment on his chances of being available for the World Cup at this stage. This will depend on how quickly he heals and how well he progresses through rehabilitation. The usual recovery time for this type of injury is three to six weeks, depending on the individual, and it can occasionally be much longer.
“However, Tim is a strong and fit athlete, who is very motivated and looks after himself well, which will benefit his recovery. We are therefore optimistic about the prognosis. He will be re-assessed at the two-week mark and we should have a better idea of his availability for the World Cup then.”
Brown will be back with his specialist in seven days’ time for another assessment and hopes to know whether he’ll be able to head to South Africa within a fortnight.
Story courtesy NZF Media
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