Shoulders are the portable part of our body that helps to elevate arms, turn, and to do other activities in almost all the directions. Sometimes, instability can occur to our shoulders as well. Shoulder instability will be caused when capsule (lining of shoulder joint), labrum, or ligaments detached, torn, or stretched.
With this, shoulder joint head (humeral head) moves out of its socket. If the shoulder slips repeatedly, then it is known as chronic shoulder disability.
The citizens of Long Beach, California, U.S, can get the treatment from chronic shoulder instability specialist by visiting ReVITALize Rehab Club at Bixby Knolls. They provide service of certified Orthopedic specialists and safe, precise, and effective physical therapy methods to treat different type of injuries at affordable price. Also, they offer sports medicine too.
Shoulder joint
Our shoulder is just like a ball as well as socket kind of joint that allows a lot of movements. It will have 3 bones. They are:
- Humerus – upper arm bone
- Scapula – shoulder blade
- Clavicle – collarbone
The ball or head of humerus fits in the shallow socket (glenoid) of shoulder blade. The humerus head will be centered in glenoid with sturdy connective tissue (shoulder capsule). This tissue not only covers shoulder joint, but also attaches both humerus and shoulder blade. Also, shoulder relies on muscles and strong tendons to remain stable.
Causes for shoulder instability
There are few common types of problems that may cause shoulder instability. They include:
Shoulder dislocation – Severe trauma or injury dislocates humeral head and ligaments that provide support to the shoulder will torn. You may experience repeat dislocation if the ligaments heal very loosely. This is also called as Bankart lesion. The shoulder may get stable again after taking a certain course of time or by taking medical assistance.
Repetitive strain – Few people who have shoulder instability will have loose ligaments instead of a dislocation. The increase in ligament looseness may be because of repetitive motion or normal anatomy.
This type of instability is usually seen in athletes who play volleyball, baseball, and other sports that involve overhead activities. The feeling or apprehension of being dislocate prevents their ability in playing their desired sports.
Multidirectional instability – Even patients without any history of repetitive strain or injury may also experience shoulder inability, but this kind of cases are very rare. These patients will have loose shoulders by birth that is connective tissue disorder.
Usually, this is known as multidirectional instability. These patients will have loose joints all over the body and may cause double-jointedness or joint laxity.
Shoulder instability symptoms
There are few common shoulder instability symptoms. They are – - Pain of injury
- Repetitive shoulder dislocation
- Changes in the sensation of shoulder
- Decrease in the movement of shoulder or arm
- Shoulder or arm bruising or swelling
Diagnosis of shoulder instability
If you are experiencing severe pain or discomfort, then you must consult your physician. Your doctor will discuss about your medical history and symptoms. A physical examination will be done to determine the range of strength and motion and palpation to identify the tenderness points.
Also, your physician evaluates the laxity of your shoulder joint or shoulder looseness degree with the help of few specific tests. They are: - Imaging tests – These tests not only help to confirm diagnosis, but also help to identify other issues too.
- X-rays – It helps to find out the causes of instability and to identify injuries of the bones like fracture.
- Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan – This scan provides a clear image of all the soft tissues. With this, your physician can identify ligaments, injuries, and tendons around your shoulder.
In addition to these, other tests will be done like arthrogram (dye test) without or with computed tomography scan (CT), but these tests are not necessary for all patients who have shoulder instability.
Treatment for shoulder instability
Non-surgical methods are used to treat chronic shoulder instability first, in case these treatment methods will not provide relief from pain. If you still experience instability even after the treatment, then you have to undergo a surgery.
After diagnosing your problem, your physician will make a treatment procedure for you to get relief from the symptoms. This treatment takes few months, so you have to wait for the results. Non-surgical treatment involves:
- Changes in activities – You have to stay away from aggravating activities that may worsen your symptoms.
- Medication – You can take anti-inflammatory, non-steroidal medications like ibuprofen and aspirin to ease your swelling and pain. Talk to your physician before taking any medicine because few medications will have side-effects.
- Physical therapy – A trained therapist will plan an exercise program depending on your problem that you can do at your home. Once your swelling and pain subside, you can start these exercises. Working on your shoulder and strengthening them helps to control the instability.
By doing these exercises, you can increase the muscle strength around your shoulder and reduce the occurrence of repetitive instability. Most of the patients who have multi-directional instability gained effective results by focusing on therapy programs.
Surgical treatment
If you have a stretched ligament or torn surgery is necessary. With this, they will be able to seize your shoulder joint at the right place. - Arthroscopy – Small incisions will be made to repair soft tissues present in your shoulder. It is an out-patient procedure. Your surgeon will use a camera to perform the process with tiny instruments.
- Open surgery – It is essential for patients with severe instability. In this procedure, your surgeon makes a large incision over your shoulder and repairs it.
Rehabilitation plan
The recovery time after the surgery depends on the kind of procedure that your surgeon performs. You can start moving your wrist, elbow, and hand the same day, but can start other activities after few days. You can add strengthening exercises to the rehab plan after 1 to 4 weeks. Usually, it takes 3 months to get the strength again.
To get back the strength and stability of your shoulder, choose a highly-experienced shoulder instability specialist and schedule your appointment today.
Fav-Fashion 