Shoulder Joint Pain Treatment
Thursday, July 2, 2015
Friday, December 14, 2012
Gearing up for Fall Sports
Don’t Be Sidelined by Injuries
More than 8 million student athletes participate in fall sports and many of them will be sidelined before the end of the season due to a sports-related injury. In fact, according to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, nearly 1.8 million student athletes will be injured this year.
Heat exhaustion, sprains and strains, and acute injuries are commonly seen in athletes returning to fall sports. After a long summer, kids are less physically prepared to hit the playing field, which can lead to an increase in injuries. A pre-season physical, wearing properly-fitting equipment and recognizing pain early can prevent some of these injuries.
Following are some of the most common injuries faced by athletes that participate in the fall’s most popular sports, including football, basketball and wrestling:
Football
More than 920,000 student athletes are treated for football-related injuries each year – the most of any fall sport. The most common football-related injuries include:
• Strains and sprains: These are the most common injuries in football and usually affect the ankle, knee or wrist. Signs of this type of injury include pain, swelling, bruising and limited ability to move the affected muscle or joint.
• Fractures: Fractures to the wrist, arm and leg account for more than one quarter of all serious football injuries. Bruises, swelling, localized pain and the inability to move the affected area, are all signs of a fracture.
• ACL tears: Indications of a possible ACL tear include hearing a “pop,” instability of the knee, immediate pain and swelling.
• Concussions: If a player experiences a significant “blow” to the head it can be very serious. They should seek immediate medical treatment if they have a headache, nausea or confusion. Loss of consciousness is also possible.
Wrestling
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, wrestling ranks fourth in participation but second in the rate of injuries suffered by athletes. In addition to concussions, the most common wrestling-related injuries include:
• Prepatellar Bursitis: Also known as “housekeeper’s knee,” key symptoms include swelling and pain on the top of the kneecap along with limited movement.
• Rotator cuff tendonitis: The wear and tear on the shoulder during wrestling can cause tendonitis, which is an inflammation within the shoulder joint. This can cause pain with movement of the arm, trouble sleeping due to pressure on the shoulder and weakness of the arm when reaching overhead.
Basketball
Each year, more than 481,000 basketball-related injuries are treated, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Some of the most common basketball injuries seen are:
• Jammed fingers: Blunt impact to the tips of fingers can cause the joints in the fingers to jam, causing pain, bruising and swelling.
• Ankle sprains: Pay attention to tenderness, pain and swelling around the ankle. These symptoms, along with the loss of movement of the ankle, can indicate an ankle sprain.
• Plantar Fasciitis: A sharp pain in the heel of the foot, especially in the morning, is a common symptom of this injury.
As with any time of year, athletes that participate in fall sports must make sure their bodies are properly conditioned before hitting the playing field. If they do experience discomfort or an injury they should seek help from their onsite medical staff and follow up medical care from an experienced orthopedic surgeon.
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Hitting the Golf Links Safely
Preventing shoulder, elbow and wrist injuries on the course
Even though golf is a low-risk sport, injuries can occur. According to the Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, more than 100,000 golf-related injuries are treated each year. Shoulder, wrist and elbow injuries occur most often in golf. Most shoulder injuries are due to overuse, while wrist and elbow injuries most likely occur due to improper swing or holding the clubs the wrong way.
Dr. Arthur Rettig recommends some simple ways you can prevent an injury from sidelining you from the links:
• Warm Up and Strengthen Your Muscles – Warm up your muscles to prevent strain. Also, by strengthening your forearm and shoulder muscles, it will help decrease shock in the arm when hitting the ball and reduce the risk of tendonitis or “golfer’s elbow.”
• Learn the Correct Technique and Practice Gradually – By learning the proper way to swing, you will put less strain on your muscles and joints. Tendonitis or tears of the rotator cuff can occur with poor backswing or overuse. Lessons from a golf instructor will help ensure the correct form.
• Use Correct Equipment – Using clubs that are too heavy or light may increase the risk of shoulder strain. It is important to use the correct equipment for your body type. Also, replace club handle grips as needed and get larger, softer grips to decrease wrist injuries.
• Wear the Proper Clothing – Wearing comfortable clothing protects you from the elements and wearing shoes such as cleats help your feet grip the ground, allowing for a more stable swing.
If you experience pain for more than seven days, visit an orthopedic surgeon to determine the extent of your injury and treatment options. While most injuries are not severe, more extensive injuries such as a torn rotator cuff or carpal tunnel syndrome may require surgery. A delay in treatment could cause further damage and keep you off the course when the greens beckon.
Question of the Day
Question of the Day
Transcript from Indianapolis Colts “Medical Minute”
Question: My husband dislocated his shoulder two days ago. He said it happened once before in high school but that it feels much worse this time. Does he need surgery?
Answer: There is a very good chance that surgery won’t be necessary.
When young people experience shoulder injuries, about 95 percent will have recurrent problems in the future. However, if this is your husband’s first injury since high school, he should respond well to a combination of ice, pain medications and physical therapy. Of course, if the pain and disability continue, we could certainly consider surgery as another option.
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Game. Set. Health.
For someone who enjoys playing and watching tennis as much as I do, this is a perfect time of year to find your racquet and join a friend on the court. It’s also a good time to fine-tune your mechanics and prepare your body for the challenge to avoid injuries
Over the years, I have treated many recreational athletes and tennis pros alike at Methodist Sports Medicine / The Orthopedic Specialists. I had the great pleasure of serving as the orthopedic consultant for the Indy Tennis Championships (formerly the RCA Championships) for 13 years until it recently moved to Atlanta. The professional players sustain injuries that are primarily related to the extreme exertion they sustain over a season that now stretches over the entire year. Recreational players, on the other hand, sustain injuries that are primarily related to poor stroke mechanics, improper equipment, and suboptimal conditioning. Many common injuries can be prevented and that’s why we recently created three educational YouTube videos at the Five Seasons Family Sports Club in Indianapolis. The videos cover proper tennis mechanics, common tennis injuries and the benefits of youth tennis.
The Five Seasons tennis pros demonstrate some of the common mistakes made by recreational players that can lead to injury. They discuss the importance of footwork and balance as essential elements of putting the player into position to hit the ball properly. Additionally they emphasize the importance of the connection of the right and left sides of the body in producing smooth effortless strokes.
In the YouTube video about common tennis injuries, we explain the basic care of acute minor injuries following the R.I.C.E. (Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation) treatment formula. Injuries which don’t resolve in a few days with the basic care may require the attention of a sports medicine physician.
Youth tennis is another important topic. I encourage parents to teach your children tennis at a young age because it’s one of the safer sports for them to play. In addition, there are long-term health benefits for children who start playing at a young age and continue playing as an adult. We discuss those positives and other benefits in the third YouTube video.
Visit our YouTube channel to watch the videos and tell us what you think in the comments section.
http://www.youtube.com/user/MethodistsSports?feature=watch
Read Dr. Sallay’s “Healthy Tennis” articles in Midwest Tennis Magazine.
http://www.methodistsports.com/physicians/peter_sallay/documents/Dr.SallayTennis_Articles.pdf
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Comment on Shoulder Pain At Night by duane
As many as 30 percent of the population will suffer some type of shoulder injury in their lifetime. It’s bad enough that your shoulder injury can impact your daily activities but what if you have shoulder pain at night? This can dramatically affect your sleeping pattern and cut down on the amount of sleep you get every night.
And we all know that people who get less than the 7-8 hours of recommended sleep each night are at a higher risk of developing many of the major diseases such as cancer and heart disease.
Before we learn why it is you have shoulder pain at night, it’s important to learn which type of shoulder injury it is you are suffering from so we can rule out ‘I just slept in weird position one night and that’s why my shoulder hurts’.
There are 4 common shoulder injuries that you could be suffering from which could be causing your shoulder pain at night: Bursitis, Tendonitis, Rotator Cuff , or a Frozen shoulder injury. Let’s examine more closely each of these type of injuries so you know for sure which one it is you are suffering with.
Shoulder Bursitis is typically described as pain that originates in the upper arm. The bursa is a fluid filled sac that keeps the tendons and muscles of the shoulder lubricated and moving freely. An injury such as shoulder bursitis typically occurs when you fall onto a hard surface with your shoulder or you receive blunt force trauma to your shoulder or upper arm. Shoulder bursitis can sometimes occur from performing repetitive activities that involves excessive shoulder rotation over a period of time but some people report bursitis developing suddenly out of nowhere.
The way to really tell if you have shoulder bursitis is that if the pain sometimes radiates down your arm, past your elbow and into your wrist, then there is a good chance you are suffering from shoulder bursitis. Pain in your shoulder increases when you lift your arm over your head or you lie on your injured shoulder. Bursitis is common in people who perform activities such as hanging drapes, wallpaper, painting and/or washing windows – just to name a few.
Another common type of shoulder injury is frozen shoulder. Frozen shoulder is typically described as a shoulder injury that decreases the range of motion of the shoulder. Sufferers of frozen shoulder usually describe difficulties in moving their arm across their body, reaching behind their back or raising the arm above their head.
The strangest thing with a frozen shoulder injury is that the cause of this injury is pretty much unknown. But what is known is that frozen shoulder commonly occurs in people who have extended periods of a lack of mobilization of the shoulder and arm, had experienced a previous shoulder injury or trauma or have had shoulder surgery in the past.
And last but definitely not least, a rotator cuff/shoulder tendonitis injury. This is by far the most commonly reported type of shoulder injury that affects millions of people every year. Rotator cuff injuries most commonly occur in the workplace, sports arena or pretty much any type of physical activity or sport. It knows no gender or age.
But the real tell tale sign of a rotator cuff injury is shoulder pain at night. As the day goes on, rotator cuff sufferers report an increase in muscle weakness and tenderness in the shoulder combined with a cracking or grinding noise when they raise their arm out to the side or in front of them due to their rotator cuff tear. A rotator cuff injury rarely comes on all of a sudden. It’s usually a result of performing some sort of repetitive actions on a daily or weekly basis that involves excessive shoulder rotation or lifting heavy objects overhead.
Some of the more high risk activities and groups of people who may develop a rotator cuff injury include: weightlifters, tennis players, swimmers, skiers, any sport that involves throwing, rugby players, painters, postal workers, hairdressers, golfers, dentists, dental assistants, cashiers, construction workers, assembly line workers – just to name a few.
But here’s the good news! You can completely eliminate your shoulder pain at night and get a good nights rest each and every night! All it really takes to completely stop your shoulder pain and cure your nagging rotator cuff injury are 4 simple, step-by-step techniques that you can do from the comfort of your own living room without any special exercise equipment or gadgets!
If you’ve had enough of the sleepless nights, tossing and turning, and feel tired when you wake up in the morning, here’s your chance to fix your shoulder pain right now!
Rotator cuff injury cause headaches?
Start having headaches can occur for people who have a rotator cuff injury. While there is no direct connection between these two, you can have headaches because of the stress of having an injury or perhaps due to fatigue from lack of physical activity.
To counter this and get back in shape, would be able to start to do rotator cuff exercises, particularly those found at the rotator cuff recovery Kit. Instead of getting a workout to chance, this is a highly organized program that will be able to afford tremendous relief and recovery with their superior rotator cuff exercises.
Moreover, these would be very convenient since the videos could be easily transferred and played on portable devices. There are also illustrations of exercises so that you wouldn't have to worry about getting lost. Get rid of Rotator cuff injury, as well as indirect headaches would be just a few days away, once you find the rotator cuff recovery Kit.