If You Have Developed A Rotator Cuff Injury Do Not Worry, The Cure Can Be Simpler Than You Think
Posted: Wednesday, October 28, 2009
by Nick Bryant
Shoulder problems come in a variety of shapes and sizes. It is probably the most complex joint that we have and consequently is one of the easiest to develop a problem with and one of the commonest shoulder injuries is a rotator cuff injury. Around thirty percent of us will suffer from a problem with these small but important muscles at some point in our lives.
The rotator cuff is made up of four muscles that help to stabilize the shoulder joint by pulling the rounded head of the humerus or upper arm into the socket of the shoulder formed by the end of the shoulder blade. These four muscles run over and around the shoulder forming a cuff of muscle, hence the name. If you didn't have these muscles it would be extremely easy to put your shoulder out of joint as the ball and socket joint of the shoulder is shallow to allow the movement that we have and enjoy.
If you injure the rotator cuff you can start to suffer from a wide range of symptoms. These include trouble getting comfortable when you lie down leading to sleepless nights, discomfort realise just how much you use your shoulder, so the simplest advice is to avoid any movement that causes discomfort. The pain in a rotator cuff injury is a sign that damage is being done. Try anti-inflammatory drugs like Ibuprofen to reduce the swelling. Do not try to work through this type of injury as you can end up turning a fairly simple problem into a major muscle tear that will need corrective surgery.
Once the inflammation and pain has subsided you can start gentle exercise aimed at strengthening the muscle, gradually increasing the frequency and amount of exercise until the shoulder is back to full, pain free, movement. Exercises for this type of injury do not involve heavy weights or strong resistance as that will tend to make you use the major muscles of the shoulder rather than the rotator cuff
Finally, don't stop the exercises once you are better. If you have suffered a shoulder injury once there is a fair chance of it happening again so, seeing that prevention is better than cure, keep your shoulders in shape as you gracefully age and keep up the exercises.
Having torn my rotator cuff and ending up with a shoulder impingement I started to research shoulders and the rotator cuff to better understand my own injury. Read more at http://www.strongershoulders.com
If you injure the rotator cuff you can start to suffer from a wide range of symptoms. These include trouble getting comfortable when you lie down leading to sleepless nights, discomfort realise just how much you use your shoulder, so the simplest advice is to avoid any movement that causes discomfort. The pain in a rotator cuff injury is a sign that damage is being done. Try anti-inflammatory drugs like Ibuprofen to reduce the swelling. Do not try to work through this type of injury as you can end up turning a fairly simple problem into a major muscle tear that will need corrective surgery.
Once the inflammation and pain has subsided you can start gentle exercise aimed at strengthening the muscle, gradually increasing the frequency and amount of exercise until the shoulder is back to full, pain free, movement. Exercises for this type of injury do not involve heavy weights or strong resistance as that will tend to make you use the major muscles of the shoulder rather than the rotator cuff
Finally, don't stop the exercises once you are better. If you have suffered a shoulder injury once there is a fair chance of it happening again so, seeing that prevention is better than cure, keep your shoulders in shape as you gracefully age and keep up the exercises.
Having torn my rotator cuff and ending up with a shoulder impingement I started to research shoulders and the rotator cuff to better understand my own injury. Read more at http://www.strongershoulders.com
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Top-level comments on this article: (5 total)Good info - how do you know the difference between strained and torn? Doesn't torn need surgery? MarijoThere are partial tears and complete tears. A complete tear will definitely need surgery. My understanding (and personal experience) is that a partial tear can heal depending on how you tore the muscle and how badly torn it is. As a non prefessional I should imagine that it is difficult to tell the difference between strained and torn. I had an MRI scan which showed up the damage.
Nick, I enjoyed this article particularly because I am a personal trainer. The content was informative, but I noticed some run-on sentences and spelling errors. A bit more editing for grammar before you submit your articles will increase your ratings. Thank you for submitting this article.
Hi Nick. Thanks for sharing this very informative and insightful article. Prevention is the best medicine but it is good to know how to deal with the problem if you happen to have it. ~Nenita
... and welcome to Searchwarp Nick. Looking forward to reading your articles.thank you
Good common sense
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