4 Common Causes of a Rotator Cuff Injury
on Thursday, May 10, 2018
Shoulder pain is a common ailment, especially in an active community such as Portland. Shoulder pain commonly occurs as a result of physical injuries, repetitive overuse, or sudden onset. In the cases of a gradual onset of pain, pain can often be attributed to a mobility issue, muscle imbalance, or some dysfunction that predisposed the individual to develop shoulder pain. Shoulder pain can often be traced to rotator cuff muscles or tendons, labrum and joint capsule, acromioclavicular (AC) joint, sternoclavicular (SC) joint, brachial plexus, or bursa(e). In some cases, one may experience referred pain to the shoulder and/or arm from a cervical spine or upper thoracic spine condition.
4 Common Causes of a Rotator Cuff Injury
A rotator cuff injury is a very common shoulder injury, especially in adults. While shoulder pain can arise from a variety of sources, rotator cuff tears are treatable and relatively easy to identify.
The most common symptoms of a rotator cuff tear include:
- Pain at rest and at night, particularly if lying on the affected shoulder.
- Pain when lifting and lowering your arm or with specific movements.
- Weakness when lifting or rotating your arm.
- Crepitus or crackling sensation when moving your shoulder in certain positions.
At Renew Physical Therapy, our treatments are one-on-one, hands-on, pain-free, and focused on the root cause of each patient’s symptoms. Our manual therapy emphasis means that, rather than attempting to decrease pain by directly strengthening a painful body part, as conventional physical therapy does, we believe in eliminating pain by improving joint function through mobilization techniques, patient education, and behavioral modification strategies. Once normal joint function is restored, a strengthening program ensues, if appropriate.
Renew Physical Therapy is proud to serve Portland-area residents suffering from rotator cuff injuries. Renew Physical Therapy utilizes several therapeutic modalities to restore pain-free function.
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