Shoulder Pain Treatment

Shoulder pain treatment can be required for trauma, overuse or degenerative changes to the joint, surrounding muscles or ligaments. Osteopath will aim to determine the type and severity of the injury and may guide you towards further investigations if necessary. Some of the common causes of shoulder pain:

Frozen shoulder

Frozen shoulder or sometimes called adhesive capsulitis, is a syndrome that causes stiffness and pain in the shoulder. It reduces normal movement in the joint and in some cases can prevent movement in the shoulder altogether requiring Should Pain Treatment. Usually only one shoulder is affected, but in 1 in 5 cases the condition occurs in the other shoulder. People between the ages of 40 and 60 are at greater risk and it is more common in women than in men. In most cases it affects the non-dominant shoulder. Without treatment symptoms usually go, but this may take up to 2-3 years.

Frozen shoulder symptoms typically have three phases.

• Phase one – the ‘freezing’, painful phase. This typically lasts 2-9 months. The first symptom is usually pain. Stiffness and limitation of movement then also gradually build up. The pain is typically worse at night, and when lying on the affected side or can be a sharp catching pain on sudden movement or external rotation (reaching to the back seat of a car, changing gear or brushing your hair).
• Phase two – the ‘frozen’, stiff phase. This typically lasts 4-12 months. Pain gradually eases but stiffness and limitation of movement remain and can get worse. All movements of the shoulder are affected but the movement most severely affected is usually rotation of the arm outwards. The muscles around the shoulder may waste slightly as they are not being used.▪Phase three – the ‘thawing’, recovery phase. This typically lasts 5-24 months. The stiffness gradually goes and movement gradually returns to norma1

Causes of frozen shoulder?

The causes of frozen shoulder are not fully understood, although it is more common among people who have diabetes.

Frozen shoulder is not related to arthritis and does not affect other joints in the body.

It was thought that scar tissue and inflammation form in the shoulder capsule (a thin layer of tissue that covers and protects the shoulder joint) may cause it to thicken, contract, and limit the movement of the shoulder. The reason why the scar tissue and inflammation formed was not known but can be helped with Shoulder Pain Treatment.

It is now thought that damage to the long bicep tendon that passes through the capsule of the shoulder may be the trigger. A frozen shoulder occasionally follows an obvious shoulder injury, but this is not usual and most cases occur gradually and cannot be attributed to any one event.

Rotator cuff injury

The rotator cuff is made up from four muscles and tendons that surround the shoulder joint, keeping the head of your upper arm bone firmly within the shallow socket of the shoulder to control movement of the joint. Both the tendons and the muscles are susceptible to tearing and inflammation.

Rotator cuff injuries occur due to injury or overuse in people who repeatedly perform overhead motions in their jobs or sports. Examples include painters, carpenters, swimmers, badminton or tennis players. The risk of rotator cuff injury also increases with age.

A rotator cuff injury can cause a dull ache at the top of the shoulder, which often worsens when you move the arm or try to sleep on the involved side. One of the most common injuries is to the supraspinatus tendon, which is susceptible to wear and tear. The severity of the injury can range from inflammation to complete tear and can be helped with Shoulder Pain Treatment.

Early management of a rotator cuff injury involves activity modification.Applying ice every few hours for 10 minutes can also help. Many people recover from rotator cuff injury following an exercise based rehabilitation program that improves flexibility and strength of the muscles surrounding the shoulder joint.

Shoulder bursitis

Shoulder bursitis is a common cause of shoulder pain that is often related to rotator cuff injury and tendonitis. This condition is sometimes called shoulder impingement syndrome. Shoulder bursitis can occur as a result of the subacromial bursa being ‘impinged’ between the rotator cuf muscles and the bone, during repeated overhead shoulder movements.

Shoulder separation

An Acromio-clavicular joint sprain or ‘shoulder separation’ is a common cause of shoulder pain. A shoulder separation usually occurs when there is either a fall onto an out stretched hand or direct contact to the tip of the shoulder as frequently seen in rugby.

Ice therapy and ultrasound can be very helpful to provide shoulder pain treatment and relief followed by an exercise regime.