A rotator cuff injury can quite often happen due to overuse in sports such as tennis, swimming, gymnastics and baseball or even just in your work place depending on your job it can also be caused by a fall. The rotator cuff is made up of four muscles - teres minor, infraspinatus, subscapularis and the supraspinatus. These are not only responsibly for the movement of the shoulder, they keep the humerus against the shoulder blade and they stabilize the shoulder joint. A rotator cuff injury can occur to any of these four muscles in the shoulder. The injury can start as small as a tingle and work way up to an unbearably pain level. If the onset happens quickly then this would more than likely be down to a specific instance like a fall or over stretching.

Scope of the Injury

The rotator cuff injury will differ from person to person. It can involve just one of the four muscles or multiple muscles. It can be as simple as an inflammation or worse such as a tear in the muscle or muscles. It maybe that in time it will heal on its own or worst case scenario it may require surgery as treatment. A rotator cuff injury can be fairly minor or awfully serious but only your doctor should make that judgement.

Some Symptoms

A common symptom in a rotator cuff injury is of course the pain. This tends to be a pain in your shoulder area that increases when raising your arm above your head. This could also increase if you are lifting a heavy load, the pain also tends to increase at night time usually in bed if you lye on the injured shoulder. In the worse cases of rotator cuff injuries, you may find the pain will be constant.

Other symptoms can include a weakened feeling in the arm. The arm in question may feel difficult to move due to the muscles freezing and the amount of movement could also be limited.

People at Risk

The most likely people at risk for a rotator injury are people that have jobs where there is heavy lifting involved or if repetitive movements of the arms are necessary especially if it involves moving the arms up high over the head and back . Elderly are at high risk for a rotator cuff injury this is down to the weakened state of their muscle strength and also a shortened motion range. Also as said above people that are doing certain type of sports could be at an increased risk for rotator cuff injuries.

Types of Treatment

When any of the symptoms are present it is imperative to seek medical attention. The doctor will do the necessary tests to find out if you do indeed have a rotator cuff injury and will be able to determine how severe the injury and will be able to advise on the next course of action. He may advise that an x-ray or other type of scan is needed to see the full extent of the damage.

If the pain is too bad he may prescribe pain killers and anti-inflammatory medication and suggest ice packs and rest if the injury is not all that severe. This also may involve having your arm in a sling to stop too much movement, an ice pack is very good just before going to bed, it reduces the swelling and that should enable you to get a good nights sleep. If you find your injury is more of a severe nature your doctor will want to talk about any further medical treatments that are needed.

To Sum Up

A rotator cuff injury in most cases can be treated fairly easily. The most important thing is to not let a rotator cuff injury get any worse than it already is without doing something about it. It can only heal if you find the right solution for the right type of injury and finding a way to prevent any additional injury to your shoulder.

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