Tendinitis of the Shoulder
articles and medical information from Dr. Nichols

Tendinitis of the Shoulder

We don’t usually think much about how our shoulder works until there is pain.  Your  shoulder has the ability to move in different directions more than any other part of the body.  Because the shoulder is so flexible it can suffer more injuries.  Some of the symptoms are:

• Gradual aching the shoulder region

• Difficulty sleeping on your shoulder

• Pain when lifting your arm overhead

•  Sudden severe pain in the upper third of your arm

• Difficulty or weakness moving your shoulder

These symptoms usually are due to problems with the rotator cuff of your shoulder.

The rotator cuff is made up of muscles and tendons that enable you to move your shoulder around and hold your upper arm in place.

The rotator cuff can be damaged or inflamed during vigorous sports activities, exercise routines, working around the home in the yard or even cleaning a room with high shelves.

Tendinitis , the most common rotator cuff problem, is from overuse that leads to irritation and pain in the shoulder joint.  Carrying heavy luggage on a trip, playing racquetball, tennis, golf, or baseball can cause tendinitis in the rotator cuff.

More painful conditions are impingement tendinitis that causes a pinching between structures  in the shoulder, or calcification tendinitis from calcium deposits in the shoulder.  These problems can limit the range of motion of the shoulder and cause loss of strength.

The severest problem  is a tear of  the rotator cuff.  This condition can happen due to a severe shoulder injury or a chronic tendinitis. With this condition a portion of one or more of the muscles tears and clicking or popping sounds may be noticed.

Treatments for rotator cuff problems:

Alternating cold and heat packs may help soothe the pain.

Your doctor may advise some type of anti-inflammatory medicine to help with the tendinitis.

Because total inactivity can cause the shoulder to become stiff quickly, some gentle stretching exercises are usually needed.

If the pain is severe, your doctor may inject cortisone into the shoulder area to reduce the inflammation and keep your shoulder moving.

Physical therapy is often needed with shoulder injuries or chronic shoulder pain.

If these treatments do not help your doctor may order diagnostic tests to determine the extent of the shoulder problem such as x-rays, MRI (magnetic resonance imaging), or a bone scan.

Surgery may be needed to treat your shoulder problem.  Arthroscopic surgery as well as open shoulder surgery are done for shoulder problems.  Your doctor can discuss these options with you.

Whatever treatment your shoulder needs, the goal is to eliminate the pain, recover the movement of your shoulder and feel good again.

References

Di Lima, S.N. (Ed.) Orthopaedic Patient Education Resource Manual.  Aspen Publishers, Inc. : Gaithersburg, Maryland.  1996. 4:9.