left shoulder hurts: Causes and treatement of shoulder pain

How can we define left shoulder hurts ?

This sheet deals specifically with tendinopathy of the rotator cuff, the musculoskeletal disorder that most often affects the shoulder joint.

This condition occurs when a shoulder tendon was overstretched. The tendons are fibrous tissues that connect muscles to bones.

When repeated often the same movements or we force inappropriately, small injuries occur in the tendons. These strain cause pain and further cause a decrease in elasticity of the tendons. Indeed, the collagen fibers produced to repair the tendons are not as good as the original tendon.

Swimmers, pitchers in baseball, carpenters and plasterers are the most at risk from people they are expected to frequently raise the arm by exerting strong pressure forward. generally allow preventive measures to avoid it.

Causes of left shoulder hurts

An overuse of the tendon by the frequent repetition of gestures performed incorrectly;

Too rapid change in the intensity of a force imposed an unprepared joint (lack of strength or endurance). Very often we find an imbalance between muscles that "pull" shoulder forward 

• which are generally strong 
• and the muscles at the back lower. 

This imbalance causes the shoulder in an unsuitable position and implies an additional stress on the tendons, making them more fragile. 

The imbalance is often exacerbated by poor posture.

Sometimes we hear of calcific tendonitis or calcification in the shoulder. Calcium deposits in tendons are part of the natural aging. They are rarely the cause of pain, unless particularly large

Treatement of left shoulder hurts

Rehabilitation Phase

Physiotherapy treatment must begin as soon as the diagnosis of shoulder tendinopathy is known. Physical therapy can reduce inflammation (if any), to orient the new collagen fibers, preventing ankylosis or regain lost mobility. This can be done using massage, friction, mobilization, ultrasound, electric current or laser.

Thereafter, the focus will be on strenghting muscle while continuing to work on the mobility of the joint. For best results, the person must participate actively in their treatment by reproducing taught home exercises.

When physical therapy and home exercises practiced fail to solve the problem, the doctor may use a cortisone injection in the joint. 

Cortisone has a powerful anti-inflammatory effect. However, do not believe that cortisone solve the problem alone long term. It can sometimes be used to reduce pain when it is important. This improves the effectiveness of physiotherapy treatments by allowing the person to perform his exercises more easily.

phase of return to normal activities

Normal activity, which includes the origin of the movements tendinopathy resumed gradually recovered when the entire range of motion and pain is halted.

A follow physiotherapy and continued strengthening and stretching exercises after the resumption of normal activities help prevent relapse.

Acute phase

The duration of the acute phase of the injury is about 7 to 10 days. During the first 48 to 72 hours, it is essential to relieve immediately the pain and inflammation that might be present. The wound remains fragile and tissues are more irritable than usual.

Here are a few tips.

• Drugs. During the acute phase, the doctor may suggest taking a pain medication (Tylenol, Atasol® or other) and refer you to a physiotherapist. The anti-inflammatory drugs available over the counter (eg Ibuprofen: Advil, Motrin, etc., or naproxen: Aleve®) or obtained on prescription can be useful in the short term, for 2 or 3 days not more. They rarely have a place in the treatment of tendinopathy in the long term.

• Put the shoulder rest by avoiding actions that have led to the lesion. However, avoid complete shutdown of movements. Indeed, while the rest is an essential component of treatment, inactivity even a few days can stiffen the joint (ankylosis). Thus, you should never immobilize the arm with a sling or splint. The adhesive capsulitis is the most common complication of immobilization of the shoulder.

• Applying ice on the shoulder 3 or 4 times daily, for 10 to 12 minutes. It is unnecessary to apply cold compresses or magic bags (they are not quite cold and warms in minutes). Continue applying ice as long as symptoms persist.

Note. Although inflammation is not the main source of the problem, it is good to use ice, because there are often transient inflammatory attacks that can easily be controlled in this way.

Surgery

When tendinopathy appears gradually, surgery is rarely necessary. It is only used when conventional therapies have not yielded the desired results after several months of treatment.

By cons, if the injury results from acute trauma causing a torn tendon, surgery must be made in the days following the accident.