{"id":804719,"date":"2020-02-28T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-02-28T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/?p=379688"},"modified":"2020-02-28T08:00:00","modified_gmt":"2020-02-28T15:00:00","slug":"common-sources-of-shoulder-pain-and-how-to-treat-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/local-news\/common-sources-of-shoulder-pain-and-how-to-treat-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Common sources of shoulder pain and how to treat it"},"content":{"rendered":"

Editor\u2019s Note: Sponsored content brought to you by Panorama Summit Orthopedics<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

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Some of the most common sources of shoulder pain include rotator cuff injuries and arthritis. Dr. Aaron Black, at Panorama Summit Orthopedics, helps patients eliminate shoulder pain and weakness through various operative and nonoperative treatments. <\/em> <\/strong>
Getty Images<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Shoulder pain can range from temporary to long-lasting, from motion-related to constant, but one of the most disruptive symptoms of any shoulder injury is its effect on sleep.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you don\u2019t sleep, everything in life becomes harder,\u201d said Dr. Aaron Black<\/a>, a shoulder, knee and trauma specialist at Panorama Summit Orthopedics.<\/p>\n

Some of the most common sources of shoulder pain include rotator cuff injuries and arthritis. In Summit County, it\u2019s common to see patients who develop shoulder arthritis as a result of previous injuries to the shoulder, such as a shoulder dislocation earlier in life, Dr. Black said.<\/p>\n

A specific diagnosis and treatment plan can result in years \u2014 or perhaps a lifetime \u2014 of pain relief and increased mobility in this important joint. It\u2019s Dr. Black\u2019s mission to make sure he\u2019s helping patients not only eliminate shoulder pain and weakness, but also get back to consistently healthy and restful sleep.<\/p>\n

Primary arthritis vs. rotator cuff arthropathy<\/strong><\/p>\n

The two broad categories of arthritis most commonly seen in Summit County are primary arthritis and rotator cuff arthropathy, or secondary arthritis. Primary arthritis has no specifically known cause and is usually related to age, sex and genes, according to the Arthritis Foundation<\/a>. Rotator cuff arthropathy happens after a large, long-standing rotator cuff tendon tear that no longer holds the head of the humerus in the socket, causing it to move upward and damage the surface of the bones, according to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.<\/p>\n

\u201cShoulder arthritis is experienced as achy pain and stiffness around the shoulder that often feels worse in the morning,\u201d Dr. Black said. \u201cRotator cuff arthropathy is usually associated with stiffness and weakness.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nonoperative arthritis treatment<\/strong><\/p>\n

Nonoperative shoulder arthritis treatment includes physical therapy and injection therapies.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs with any arthritic joint, the more you use it, the less stiff it is and the less pain you have,\u201d Dr. Black said.<\/p>\n

PT can help improve range of motion in the shoulder, while icing the shoulder two or three times a day can reduce inflammation and ease pain.<\/p>\n

Dr. Black\u2019s injection therapy options include cortisone and biologic agents, such as platelet-rich plasma (PRP), all of which act primarily as anti-inflammatories.<\/p>\n

No biologic injection therapies contain stem cells for tendons or cartilage, despite advertisements to the contrary, and thus do not regrow cartilage or tendons, he said.<\/p>\n

Cortisone injections can offer pain relief for three to six months, while PRP tends to last a bit longer, Dr. Black said. The procedures are performed in the office under ultrasound guidance.<\/p>\n

Shoulder joint replacement (arthroplasty) <\/strong><\/p>\n

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An anatomic total shoulder replacement vs. a reverse total shoulder replacement. Reverse replacements are extremely reliable for reducing or eliminating pain, but less reliable for getting full range of motion back<\/em>.<\/strong>
Mayo Clinic<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

If shoulder arthritis is severe, it\u2019s less likely that the nonoperative options will get the job done. The next option for these patients would be shoulder joint replacement surgery.<\/p>\n

Dr. Black said there are two types of shoulder replacements: anatomic total shoulder replacement and reverse total shoulder replacement. There are roughly 53,000 of these surgeries performed each year in the United States, according to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.<\/p>\n

Both procedures have differing benefits. Dr. Black said that anatomic replacements can be done on patients of any age, but those who have it at a younger age might require another surgery later in life. The procedure works well for getting patients back to their normal activities.<\/p>\n

Reverse replacements are extremely reliable for reducing or eliminating pain, but less reliable for getting full range of motion back, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do all of my shoulder replacements with custom 3D modeling and patient-specific guides made to ensure the components are in exact right position,\u201d Dr. Black said.<\/p>\n

Dr. Black stresses that all joint replacements are elective surgeries.<\/p>\n

\u201cI will never tell a patient they have to have a joint replacement,\u201d he said. \u201cThis is symptom-based \u2014 when you say it\u2019s time, it\u2019s something I\u2019ll say you should have. I want all of my patients to be informed about the options.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shoulder joint replacement recovery includes about six weeks in a sling, and in three to four months most patients are back to regular activity with continued improvement from there.<\/p>\n

Rotator cuff injuries<\/strong><\/p>\n

Another common local shoulder affliction is to the rotator cuff, which is the combination of muscles and tendons that keep your arm bone centered in your shoulder socket to provide shoulder motion and stability. Dr. Black said these injuries can happen during a fall when the arm is thrown away from the body, but sometimes rotator cuff injuries are chronic and happen over time.<\/p>\n

Some people even have large tears to the rotator cuff without ever feeling any symptoms.<\/p>\n

The good news is that there are a lot of treatment options, from physical therapy and injections to repair or reconstruction surgery.<\/p>\n

via:: Summit Daily<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Editor\u2019s Note: Sponsored content brought to you by Panorama Summit Orthopedics Some of the most common sources of shoulder pain include rotator cuff injuries and arthritis. Dr. Aaron Black, at Panorama Summit Orthopedics, helps patients eliminate shoulder pain and weakness through various operative and nonoperative treatments. Getty Images Shoulder pain can range from temporary to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[99],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-804719","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-local-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-07-20 08:16:43","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSMT The Mountain","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/804719","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=804719"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/804719\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=804719"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=804719"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=804719"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}