Shoulder Pain

Shoulder pain

Pain in the shoulder can be a result of injury, trauma, or medical condition, such as a frozen shoulder. Shoulder pain or injury can affect any of the muscles, ligaments, or tendons surrounding the shoulder joint. Injury can also affect the bursae, cartilage, menisci, and bones of the joint. So, because the shoulder needs to be as mobile as possible, its design is such that it sacrifices stability for mobility. As a result of this, it is easily injured.

However, because the shoulder needs to be as mobile as possible, its design is such that it sacrifices stability for mobility. As a result of this, it is more easily injured.

Common shoulder injuries

Many injuries are impact in nature such as from rugby or other contact sports. It can also be injured from overuse such as in tennis, squash or throwing sports like cricket.  This, therefore, can result in inflammation of the bursae (bursitis) or tendons (tendonitis) and result in a torn rotator cuff with dysfunction, impingement, as well as instability and frozen shoulder. Fracture of the bones of the shoulder (such as from biking falls) can cause intense shoulder pain.

Direct trauma after a fall can also cause intense pain due to the strain on the mobile joint, easily stretching the tissues.  Trauma may result in a bone fracture.

Pain can also occur in the shoulder from diseases or other conditions.  These conditions may include arthritis such as osteoarthritis (or degenerative arthritis with bone spurs), the soft tissues and bones surrounding the shoulder, or the nerves that supply sensation to the shoulder area. Occasionally, shoulder pain can be a result of a heart a heart condition.

  • Acromioclavicular (a/c) pain
  • arthritis
  • biceps tendinitis
  • bursitis
  • capsulitis
  • frozen shoulder
  • infraspinatus tendonitis
  • instability
  • ligament injury
  • muscular pain
  • painful arc
  • rehabilitation after injury or surgery
  • rotator cuff
  • shoulder-hand syndrome
  • subluxation
  • supraspinatus tendinitis
  • sternoclavicular pain
  • tendon injury or tear
  • trapped nerve

Treating shoulder pain

Treatment of shoulder injuries initially looks at the way your shoulder was injured and focuses on the tissues injured or inflamed. We then can look at the stability of the shoulder joint, typically this, therefore, lets us look at the rotator cuff and its rehabilitation.

Because the shoulders counterbalance each other it is then important to look at how the shoulders work. As a team, the shoulders work with each other, and believe it or not the hips, pelvis and upper thoracic and cervical spine. Due to the need for the balance of the body, it is therefore important to assess this as part of a diagnostic and treatment process.

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