Frozen shoulder means your shoulder is painful and stiff for months, sometimes years. It can be treated with shoulder exercises and painkillers.
TreatmentBroadly, treatment works in 3 main steps:
You may get a mix of these treatments depending on how painful and stiff your shoulder is. Stronger pain relief is usually only used for a short time because it can cause side effects. Physiotherapy for frozen shoulderPhysiotherapy can help you get movement back in your shoulder. Treatments from a physiotherapist include:
How long frozen shoulder lasts Frozen shoulder can take at least 1.5 to 2 years to get better. Sometimes it can be up to 5 years. But the pain and stiffness will usually go away eventually. How you can ease the pain yourselfDo
Don't
Causes of frozen shoulderIt's often not clear why people get a frozen shoulder. Frozen shoulder happens when the tissue around your shoulder joint becomes inflamed. The tissue then gets tighter and shrinks, which causes pain. Frozen shoulder can happen because:
What are the symptoms of frozen shoulder? The typical symptoms are pain, stiffness, and limitation in the range of movement of a shoulder. The symptoms typically have three phases.
Symptoms often interfere with everyday tasks such as driving, dressing, or sleeping. Even scratching your back, or putting your hand in a rear pocket may become impossible. Work may be affected in some cases. There is great variation in the severity and length of symptoms. Untreated, on average the symptoms last 2-3 years in total before going. In some cases it is much less than this. In a minority of cases, symptoms last for several years. Who gets frozen shoulder? Frozen shoulder affects about 1 in 50 adults at some stage in their life. It most commonly occurs in people aged between 40 and 60. It is more common in people who have diabetes. Either shoulder can be affected but most commonly it is the non-dominant shoulder. That is, the left shoulder in a right handed person. In about 1 in 5 cases the condition also develops in the other shoulder at some stage. Frozen shoulder is not a form of arthritis, and other joints are not affected. The cause is not clear. It is thought that some scar tissue forms in the shoulder capsule. The capsule is a thin tissue that covers and protects the shoulder joint. The scar tissue may cause the capsule to thicken, contract, and limit the movement of the shoulder. The reason why the scar tissue forms is not known. A frozen shoulder occasionally follows a shoulder injury, but this is not usual and most cases occur for no apparent reason. The aim of treatment is to ease pain and stiffness, and obtain full the range of shoulder movement. Physiotherapy exercises are key to recovery........ 20 to 30 times each day in divided numbers. Anti-inflammatory painkillers to ease stiffness For example, ibuprofen, diclofenac, naproxen, etc. One of these drugs is commonly prescribed to ease pain. There are many different brands. Therefore, if one does not suit, another may be fine. Side-effects sometimes occur with anti-inflammatory painkillers. Always read the leaflet that comes with the drug packet for a full list of cautions and possible side-effects. Target & Joint injections for movement gain Shoulder exercises..... Regularly, as instructed by a doctor or physiotherapist. Physiotherapy Anti-inflammatory analgesic target injections Nerve block Hydrodistension Surgery
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