Rotator Cuff Tear

How Does the Rotator Cuff Work?

The four muscles of the rotator cuff make sure that your shoulder joint is held together properly. The tendons of these muscles join together over the top end of your upper arm bone to form a special capsule within the shoulder joint. Between this lubricated surface and the rest of the shoulder joint lies a piece of tissue known as a bursa. This sac allows the rotator cuff tendons to move smoothly around, affording your arm a huge range of motion.

When you tear one or more muscles of the rotator cuff, the tendons can no longer properly attach to the head of the upper arm bone, the humerus. Such tears can occur gradually over time and there's often a single event that acts as the proverbial straw that breaks the camel's back. Usually this occurs in the supraspinatus muscle but a rotator cuff tear can involve any of the four muscles.

A tear may be partial or full in nature, and is separated into two kinds. An acute tear is almost always caused by trauma such as a sporting incident. This might occur alongside other injuries like a fractured clavicle or shoulder dislocation.

Alternatively, rotator cuff tears can be degenerative and are made worse by repetitive activities, poor blood supply and bone spurs caused by osteoarthritis in the shoulder joint.

What Are the Symptoms and How Can They Be Alleviated?

The symptoms of a rotator cuff tear are reasonably specific and your doctor should quickly come to a diagnosis and offer a treatment plan that involves the use of a special shoulder sling or brace.

You will experience pain, especially when resting and at night. This is naturally made worse if you have a habit of sleeping on the affected shoulder. Lifting or lowering your arm will exacerbate the pain, and the specific movements that cause the most pain will help your doctor to arrive at their conclusion of a torn rotator cuff muscle.

When you try to lift or rotate your arm, you'll also feel a degree of weakness as the muscles are no longer securely attached to the bones of the shoulder joint. This may be made worse by any nerve damage or impingement that has occurred simultaneously.

You may hear or feel a crackling or popping sensation when you move your shoulder into certain positions, which confirms that something untoward is taking place within the joint. Your doctor will be able to use all these symptoms and signs to come to a definitive diagnosis.

Half of all patients benefit fully from non-invasive conservative management centered around the RICE protocol. This involves resting the joint, applying ice packs to the injured zone, compressing the joint to drive away any swelling, and elevation to drain any fluid buildup. Of course, elevation should not require that you put your arm into an uncomfortable position.

If you avoid those activities which make your pain worse and take some anti-inflammatory medication, you'll already be on the road to recovery as your body heals itself. You can speed up the process and make it more effective by employing a range of strengthening exercises which can be used alongside use of your shoulder sling or brace. The addition of stretching exercises will make sure that you regain a full range of motion as well as benefiting from a return to your previous strength level.

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