Shoulder Pain
Treat Shoulder Pain Effectively In Kansas City, MO
Shoulder pain may be chronic or acute, but no matter what form it comes in, it is a symptom of an underlying disorder or injury that can interfere with your lifestyle. Our office believes in using functional medicine as an approach to help you enjoy a full range of activities at home, at the gym, and at work, which means we look for root causes to address permanently rather than temporarily alleviating the basic symptom of pain. Contact Restore Muscle and Joint to make an appointment with our team of specialists. We’ll help you understand your own body and choose from a range of treatment options to eliminate not only the pain, but also the real issue that’s creating the problem.
What Can Cause Shoulder Pain
Shoulder pain can be caused by various factors, including inflammation, tears, arthritis, bone spurs, frozen shoulder, dislocation, and other conditions such as calcific tendonitis, periarthritis, osteoarthritis, polymyalgia rheumatica, and lung conditions such as cancer. The rotator cuff tendons becoming inflamed or trapped in the shoulder is the most common cause of shoulder pain, which is known as rotator cuff tendinitis. Tendinitis can come in two types, acute and chronic, and is often caused by inflammation in the tendon. Tendon tears occur from acute injuries or degenerative changes. Impingement occurs when the top of the shoulder blade rubs against the rotator cuff tendons and bursa, leading to bursitis and tendinitis. Shoulder instability happens when the arm bone is forced out of the shoulder socket due to injury or overuse. Therefore, there can be various causes of shoulder pain, and it is essential to seek medical attention to determine the cause and proper treatment.
What is Frozen Should and How Can Physical Therapy Help
Frozen shoulder, also known as adhesive capsulitis, is a condition where the ligaments holding the shoulder joint in place become inflamed, leading to restricted joint movements and pain. It can be misdiagnosed as a rotator cuff tear, and is more common in women, people with diabetes, and those who have had shoulder surgery or immobility in the shoulder [1,2]. Physical therapy is the preferred treatment option for frozen shoulder [1,3]. Physical therapists can provide exercises, stretching, mobilizations, and moist heat to improve mobility and strength, and help treat the symptoms like pain and stiffness [2]. In over 90% of cases, patients recover with physical therapy alone, while in some cases, medication injections or surgery may be necessary [1]. The recovery process can take six months to a year, and in some cases, it can become a recurring problem [1]. Therefore, physical therapy is an essential part of the treatment process for frozen shoulder to help restore mobility and relieve pain.
References: [1] Mayo Clinic Q and A: Treatment for frozen shoulder [2] What is Frozen Shoulder and Can PT Help? [3] Physical therapy in the management of frozen shoulder
Discovering the Real Source of Pain
Before taking care of shoulder pain, we evaluate the cause to see how we can prevent its recurrence. Most shoulder pain can be categorized into four main causes:
- Fractured or broken bone: This acute form of injury is quite serious, but sometimes, minor fractures go unnoticed or misdiagnosed without the help of a professional. Continuing to use your injured shoulder and arm can exacerbate the problem.
- Instability and dislocations: This is another form of injury where the top of the arm bone is forced out of its normal position in the shoulder socket. While a medical professional can push the bone back into place, it’s critical to see a specialist to ensure the injury heals safely and full motion is restored to your arm.
- Tendon inflammation or tearing: Bursitis, tendinitis, and tearing all involve painful inflammation in different forms; in order to treat the pain effectively, an experienced specialist needs to identify what type of tendon issue is causing the pain.
- Arthritis: Arthritis causes swelling, pain, and stiffness in affected joints, and it’s not limited exclusively to middle aged patients.
The risk of self-diagnosis and treatment.
The Risk of Self-Diagnosis and Treatment
As discussed, shoulder pain itself isn’t realty the problem; there is an underlying injury, disorder, or lifestyle that creates the problem and causes the pain. Since not all shoulder pain is the same, it’s important to see a professional to determine the type of injury or root cause giving you pain, and then address that problem as well as effectively minimize the painful symptoms. If you try to self-diagnose using online information or videos, you won’t get the personalized evaluation from an expert and you may end up treating pain from an ergonomic issue at work as if it was caused by a sports injury.
Restore Muscle and Joint also discourages patients from seeking over-the-counter medication as a way to “treat” the problem, because this is merely a temporary alleviation of a symptom, not a solution to the problem. In these self-treatment scenarios, the best possible outcome is minor temporary relief that quickly reverts to chronic or acute pain. The worst potential outcome is that you accidentally treat the wrong problem or leave an issue unresolved, causing further harm or injury to your shoulder.
So if you notice any kind of shoulder pain, from a dull ache to an acute jab, please visit Restore Muscle and Joint. We’ll provide a personalized examination that takes into account your daily lifestyle and medical history, and use a combination of functional medicine and therapy to truly correct your individual problem to eliminate pain. Get professional treatment today; call our team!