Rotator cuff injury
Rotator cuff injury is the most common shoulder injury.
The shoulder is a ball and socket joint (like the hip joint). The ball at the top (head) of the arm bone (humerus) sits in the socket (glenoid cavity) of the scapula (shoulder blade) and the ball-and-socket joint allows the arm to move in all directions. The rotator cuff is made up of the muscles that attach the shoulder blade to the head of the humerus. It strengthens the shoulder joint and helps the arm to rotate.
Shoulder joint
The glenoid labrum is a flap of tough connective tissue at the edge of the socket (glenoid cavity) of the shoulder joint. The labrum helps to keep the ball firmly in the socket.
When someone suffers a shoulder injury, physicians can often diagnose the problem based on a medical assessment in a physical and rehabilitation medicine or sports medicine consultation with one of an orthopaedists or one of our physiatrists. However, sometimes an x-ray or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is also required.
Many shoulder injuries heal with rest followed by rehabilitation exercises. Range-of-motion exercises are started soon after, and progressed through physiotherapy sessions until the patient is fully recovered. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs, such as ibuprofen) may also be used for short-term pain relief (for up to 72 hours). If the pain persists for more than 72 hours, the person should be referred to a specialist to decide whether further treatment (such as a corticosteroid injection or surgery) is needed.
If you need treatment for a shoulder injury, contact our physiotherapy clinics in Lisbon.
