Many joins make up the shoulder joint. The joint form an intricate system that enables a person to either; drink a cup of tea, scratch your back, and comb your hair amongst other activities. It is a joint that is crucial in the day to day activities and in presence of pain and stiffness; there is a lot of restrictions to perform any duties. Several parts including tendons, muscles, bursa, bones, and ligaments amongst others make the shoulder joint. All of these can cause pain and inhibit normal movements. Injury can be either gradual or sudden onset. Gradual onset is whereby there is repeated micro trauma over a period of time while sudden onset is usually an injury like falls and hits.
Whenever someone has pain, it is always important to get assessed to determine which structures might have been torn or hurt. Most shoulder pains have a high recurrence rate due to its overuse during day to day activities. Muscles that surround the shoulder joint are prone to tears especially in people who use overhead activities for example baseball pitchers. Most people also have torn rotator cuff muscles that are asymptomatic. When having shoulder pain and movement difficulties it is important you visit a physiotherapist who will assess and determine the cause of pain and work on improving your quality of life through education, treatment and management. The exercise prescription is crucial on the scapula thoracic spine and neck. Most shoulder pain recovers well with physiotherapy and exercises whereby only few cases require surgery.
By Michael Ombati,
Physical Therapist,
C & P Health Centre.
