Blog post produced and written by Clinic Manager and Sports Injury Specialist Jason Dodd.
Treating shoulder impingement pain…..
Have you been told before that you have to complete a series of exercises in order to solve your shoulder pain? The likely answer here is yes, but do you know WHY you have to do it? Here at Bodylogics, we place a huge emphasis not only on the HOW you do it but rather the WHY. If you can understand why you are being asked to do something then you are likely to continue but you can then also self-adjust away from the clinic and this enables you to see us fewer times and therefore get even more value from your visits with us!
There is no recipe…..
When it comes to shoulder pain, admittedly there is no recipe. Each intervention is unique to the individual but there are some principles which are applied to every patient. For the purpose of this blog we are not going to explore this as the list can go on quite a lot. What we are going to do though is look at shoulder pain specifically and how exercise has been proven to work.
The key point here is the proof! Evidence based practice is vital to ensure the best outcomes. Whilst there is room to use some interventions which do not have complete conclusive claims, the majority of our work should focus on what is proven to work.
In this case, the paper by Holmgren, et al, 2012 titled “Effect of specific exercise strategy on need for surgery in patients with sub acromial impingement syndrome: randomised controlled study.” Is a fantastic paper to refer back to if you are ever seeking evidence based criteria for the management of shoulder pain at the rotator cuff region.
How will it help me though?
In the paper, there were 102 participants and they were split into 2 groups. One did specific shoulder exercises with load and the other group non-specific exercises with no load. And the results were quite outstanding. The levels of pain in the specific group dropped significantly compared to the non-specific group and the rates in which patients opted for surgery to help their pain was 20% in the specific exercise group and 63% in the non-specific exercise group. This gives us great justification for using exercise interventions for the treatment of shoulder pain.
I have multiple examples of how exercise intervention has led to greater outcomes in those with shoulder pain. One patient in particular stands out to me as suffering from long term shoulder impingement and having tried various other physios and also steroid injection, she visited me. After explaining what is likely happening in the shoulder we embarked on a very structured programme centred on the shoulder with regular check in’s to monitor pain and apprehension. The uniqueness about this case was that the patient was so determined to succeed and allowed trust and faith in the process. This could only have been achieved though through ensuring the patient knew WHY she was being asked to do the exercises. I found this led to a greater investment from her with her time as she understood the outcomes and how things should feel. Again, something I pride myself on with all my patients, making sure they understand and are listened to.
Shoulder pain can be a truly debilitating injury and I know that it can be draining to deal with. But here at Bodylogics, we work with you to ensure you get the best outcome possible and are with you every step of the way. If you are in pain with your shoulder then why not get in touch now and we can help you get back on the right pathway back to recovery and help reduce your pain.
