Shoulder pain often indicates serious problems in the body, regardless of whether it occurs in the right or left arm. The disease of the shoulder joint progresses slowly and almost imperceptibly. At first, minor pain may occur, mainly in the evening, then its intensity increases. In the absence of timely, competent therapy, gradual deformation of the joint occurs, as a result of which its functionality sharply decreases.
In order to select the most effective treatment regimen, doctors at the Yusupov Hospital Therapy Clinic prescribe patients a comprehensive examination, the results of which help to find out the root cause of pain in the shoulder joint.
Mechanism of occurrence
Mechanism of occurrence
If pain is detected in the shoulder joints of the arms, treatment must be prescribed taking into account the development mechanism.
Symptoms
The main symptoms of shoulder arthrosis include:
- pain: occurs due to decreased smoothness of articular surfaces, proliferation of osteophytes and bone deformation; the intensity, duration and nature of the sensations depend on the degree of damage;
- crunch: one of the characteristic symptoms of the disease that appears in the early stages; differs from the physiological one in a coarser tone, and is also often accompanied by pain;
- limitation of mobility: associated with the appearance of pathological growths and particles of destroyed cartilage inside the joint; in the first stages it is represented by slight morning stiffness, which later increases until complete immobility (ankylosis);
- deformation: a change in the contours of first only the joint, and then the arm, occurs in the later stages of the disease and indicates complete destruction of the cartilage and involvement of bones, muscles and ligaments in the pathological process.
The progression of symptoms can occur over years or even decades, but eventually arthrosis of the shoulder joint leads to the inability to move the arm and severe pain.
Why pain occurs, main reasons
The appearance of pain in the shoulder area is not an independent disease, but a clinical manifestation of the influence of a significant number of different provoking factors, which include:
- Aseptic inflammation affecting various structures of the shoulder (nerve fibers, capsule, cartilage tissue of the joint, tendons, muscles).
- Joint infection (bacterial arthritis).
- An autoimmune process that is the result of a violation of the functional state of the immune system, in which antibodies are produced to the body’s own tissues, in particular to the connective tissue structures of the musculoskeletal system with the development of an inflammatory reaction in them.
- Degenerative-dystrophic processes with destruction of cartilaginous structures (arthrosis).
- Systematic significant exposure to physical activity.
- Previous injuries to the shoulder area affecting various structures (dislocation, subluxation, sprain of ligaments, capsules, fracture of the bone base, severe bruise).
Referred pain may also appear, which is the result of the development of a pathological process of another localization in the body (pain in the left shoulder with angina, referred pain with pathology of the cervical spine on the right or left).
General information
Cartilage tissue is a smooth layer between the adjacent areas of bones. It ensures their easy sliding relative to each other, ensuring free and painless operation of the joint. Excessive stress, inflammation or injury can trigger a degenerative process that gradually spreads over the entire surface.
As a result, the smoothness of the articular surfaces is disrupted, and movements begin to cause pain. At the same time, bone growths begin to appear along the edges of the joint, replacing the affected cartilage. As the degenerative process progresses, it involves not only bones, but also surrounding tissues. The limb becomes deformed, the muscles spasm, and the ligaments become weak and lose elasticity. Without treatment, a person loses the ability to move his arm.
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Diagnostics
Diagnostics
For the differential diagnosis of reflected pain, electrocardiography (ECG) and methods for visualizing the structures of the cervical spine are used.
Pain in the shoulder joint - treatment
Treatment of a disease accompanied by pain of varying degrees of severity and nature in the shoulder area is necessarily comprehensive. It includes several main areas:
- Etiotropic therapy is a set of measures aimed at eliminating the influence of the main causative factor. It can be conservative or include various surgical techniques.
- Pathogenetic therapy - with the help of drugs, the main pathogenetic mechanisms of the formation of pain syndrome are influenced.
- Symptomatic therapy is treatment aimed at reducing the severity of clinical manifestations of the pathological process that worsen the patient’s quality of life.
General directions of therapeutic activities usually complement each other and can be intertwined. Often, one pharmacological group of drugs is used for symptomatic and pathogenetic therapy - non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. The choice of a set of therapeutic measures is made by the doctor based on clinical symptoms, as well as the results of additional diagnostic tests.
Pain in the shoulder joint of the right arm - treatment
Pain in the right shoulder is often of traumatic origin. After diagnosing the nature and localization of the violation of anatomical integrity, complex conservative and surgical treatment can be prescribed, aimed at restoring tissues and structures, as well as their functional state.
After preoperative preparation (including the prescription of various medications that improve the general condition of the patient’s body, as well as drugs to prevent postoperative complications, in particular bleeding and secondary bacterial infection), open access surgery or arthroscopic surgery is performed. It is less traumatic.
In the case of inflammatory origin of pain, conservative drug therapy is predominantly used, as well as physiotherapeutic procedures (magnetic therapy, ozokerite, mud baths, electrophoresis with anti-inflammatory medications). They help reduce pain in the right shoulder joint.
Treatment may vary in duration, depending on the severity of the traumatic or pathological injury, as well as the surgical technique performed.
Treatment of pain in the left shoulder joint
Advantages of the clinic
The Health Energy Clinic offers its patients:
- comprehensive health screening programs;
- extensive examinations for an accurate diagnosis;
- consultations with narrow specialists of various profiles;
- modern treatment regimens, including not only medications, but also physiotherapy, massage and exercise therapy;
- affordable prices for all services.
Arthrosis of the shoulder joint is a problem that can completely change a person’s life. Don’t let the disease reach an irreversible stage, come for a consultation with an orthopedist at Energy of Health.
Treatment of pain in the left shoulder joint
Treatment of pain in the left shoulder joint
Discomfort in the left shoulder is also quite the result of a previous injury, and therefore sometimes requires surgical intervention. In modern medical clinics, it is performed using arthroscopy (a diagnostic and treatment technique in which a tube with a camera and lighting is inserted through small incisions; under visual control on a monitor, the doctor performs the necessary manipulations with microinstruments).
Conservative treatment of pain in the shoulder joint of the left hand is carried out with the help of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, chondroprotectors, vitamins, and physiotherapeutic procedures in the case of diagnosed inflammatory or degenerative-dystrophic processes.
Referred pain requires the implementation of therapeutic measures aimed at normalizing heart function in case of angina pectoris or restoring the relationship of the structures of the cervical spine in case of osteochondrosis.
Muscle pain in the shoulder joint - treatment
Muscle pain syndrome often occurs against the background of aseptic inflammation. In this case, anti-inflammatory drugs and physiotherapeutic procedures in the form of dry heat or infrared radiation are prescribed.
Worried shoulder joint, pain when raising the arm - treatment
If, when trying to move the shoulder with the arm raised upward, discomfort and crunching occur, then SLAP syndrome usually occurs, characterized by traumatic or pathological damage to the lips of the glenoid cavity, increasing its depth. Therapeutic measures in this case include surgery using arthroscopy.
If pain and crunching develop in the shoulder joint, treatment may include the prescription of anti-inflammatory drugs and chondroprotectors to reduce the severity of degenerative processes of cartilage tissue.
Severe pain in the shoulder joint - treatment
Treatment of acute shoulder pain usually involves the use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.
Severe pain in the shoulder joint
Severe pain in the shoulder joint
If it occurs against the background of an injury, then measures must be taken to reduce the mobility of the shoulder (immobilization with a splint or applying a tight bandage to the shoulder) and reduce the severity of tissue swelling, which increases pain. This is done by applying local cold in the form of an ice pack or wetting the injury area with cold water.
Significant intense pain that is not relieved by conventional means requires the use of narcotic painkillers.
Diet
For shoulder arthrosis of any degree, it is important to monitor your diet:
- avoid overeating and excess weight;
- minimize harmful foods: fatty, spicy, salty, alcohol, canned food, smoked foods;
- consume a sufficient amount of foods high in collagen (jelly, aspic) and omega-3 (fatty fish, olive oils);
- give preference to boiled, steamed or stewed food rather than fried foods;
- reduce the amount of quickly digestible carbohydrates.
The diet should be complete and include the required amount of vitamins, minerals and nutrients.
