Treating an Injured Rotator Cuff-

Sonni57 | Feb 3, 2011 |

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Rotator Cuff Pain

Injured Rotator Cuff

Treating an injured rotator cuff isn't something that we want to do, but it is something that we may need to do when the time comes. I have had my rotator cuff torn twice and injured too many times to count, so this is a topic I know quite a bit about. I have also had to deal with tendonitis in the shoulder as well. They are similar in that the pain is in the shoulder; however, the pain is different. Tendonitis pain is a sudden and sharp when you move the shoulder in a way that aggravates the tendons. Most tendonitis in the shoulder is caused from overuse or over doing it which is why many athletes get it. Mine was caused from over doing it while weight training. In fact, most all of my rotator cuff injuries and shoulder tendonitis was caused from over training with weights.

Pain from a torn or injured rotator cuff can be sharp and sudden when you make sudden fast moves with the affected arm. This usually happens when you first get the injury and forget that it is there. However, once you do it you won't do it again, since the pain can be significant depending on the seriousness of the injury. When it is a torn rotator cuff the pain is much worse than when it is simply strained or stressed. Stressed or strained rotator cuff pain is a dull ache that doesn't go away and only gets sharp when you make a wrong move. The problem is that you don't know what the wrong move is until you do it. Movement that causes sharp pain when a rotator cuff is injured needs to be avoided as this can make the injury worse and if there is a tear it can make the tear bigger.

To avoid sharp pain when you have an injured or torn rotator cuff you need to move the affected arm slowly or not at all. When I had a torn left rotator I had to reach over the left arm with my right to shut the car door. You do what you got to do! This is not to say that you don't move the injured shoulder at all you just don't use it for everyday tasks. However, you do exercise and stretch it to keep it moving, but you need to prepare it beforehand. Before you move an injured rotator you use heat and massage to prepare it for movement and move it with help from the other arm. Do not force any movement or you can make it worse creating longer recovery.

Injured Rotator Cuff Treatment

Sometimes when a rotator cuff is injured you feel it right away, especially when it is a fast and you know instantly that you cannot move the shoulder or arm without causing severe pain. In this case you need to see a doctor right away for x-rays and MRI. Other times the pain seems to come from nowhere and this is how all of my rotator cuff injuries were. While I may have felt a twinge here and there I kept on going and pushed through like most all weight trainers do. This is a big mistake as I found out the hard way. Once you feel pain in the shoulder it's time to back off or you're asking for an injured rotator cuff or tendonitis, one or the other.

This holds true of any sport or activity that you may be doing that causes shoulder pain. Once you injure a rotator or create tendonitis it is very difficult to get it back the way it was before the injury. You have weakened the shoulder muscles and tendons possibly compromising them forever.

Once you know that the rotator cuff is injured treat with cold therapy at once. Cold gel packs are best since they tend to conform to the shape of the shoulder easier. The goal is to keep swelling to a minimum, you may not see swelling, but that doesn't mean it isn't there. Cold therapy also helps to numb the area and alleviate pain, during this time do not move the shoulder. After treatment attempt to move the shoulder slowly and if there is sharp pain STOP! However, some discomfort is to be expected and normal, so keep moving when this is the case to improve range of motion.

Later switch to heat therapy as heat relaxes muscles and prepares them for movement and to be stretched. The goal now is to heal the injury and get back range of motion. One of the best ways to utilize heat therapy is in the shower with the use of moist heat. While in the shower massage the sore injured rotator and move it around as much as you can without pain. Remember there will be discomfort this is okay, but pain is not. When severe pain occurs back off and try another direction. Keep in mind that you're using the good arm to move it as it may not be able to move on its own, but you can help it out and get range of motion back.

Alternating cold and heat therapy along with range of motion exercises, stretches and massage are very effective treatment for an injured rotator cuff. Understand that in the beginning you work on range of motion only and not strengthening. Once you get flexibility back and can move the shoulder in all directions without pain then it is safe to graduate to resistance exercises. Do not try to lift or push heavy weight, start with very light weight or resistance. The more consistent therapy is the better, which means do it daily. You must keep the rotator cuff moving even if it's very small movement, so as to avoid frozen shoulder and make matters worse.

If you want to heal quicker the use of an ultrasound therapy machinecan speed up recovery time. Home portable ultrasound machines are safe and effective and very much like the ones used by physical therapists only not as strong. They come with ultrasound gel and instructions, so it's simple and ready to go. They sell for under $100 online at Amazon.

Treating an injured rotator cuff or rehabbing it can be done at home as I have done it several times. The longest it ever took was 6 months and that was with a tear. Now I am more careful and when my shoulder even hints at pain I back off and I advise you to do the same.

Also see: Ultrasound Therapy for Shoulder Pain