Watching For And Treating Torn Rotator Cuff Symptoms
Even though they are much more common in middle-aged people, torn rotator cuff symptoms can affect people of any age. Whether through repetitive strain injuries, accidents or other causes, this is a serious problem. When caused by an accident, the nature of the injury is generally immediately obvious; but when due to repetitive stress, the damage to the rotator cuff happens gradually and may not be noticed for some time.
The first sign of an injured rotator cuff is usually throbbing pains which happen periodically and are not usually very severe. Many simply take a pain reliever and ignore the problem – which is a serious mistake, since they tend to continue putting stress on the injured joint, exacerbating the problem. All the pain reliever does is to numb the pain for a short time, with the symptoms returning worse than before once it wears off. The other early signs of an injured rotator cuff are stiffness, swelling and weakness. These symptoms show up slowly and worsen over time, which allows the suffer to prevent the worst possible outcome if they take action, since these symptoms will be experienced before the tear actually occurs.
A condition called “frozen shoulder” (adhesive capsulitis) may develop if no treatment is sought after experiencing the earlier torn rotator cuff symptoms. This condition is characterized by a reduction in the ability to move the shoulder, often to the point where even routine tasks like dressing or driving can be done only with the greatest difficulty.
Most people start taking heed of the torn rotator cuff symptoms when they start becoming unbearable. These symptoms build up over time and are a result of the inflammation of the rotator cuff. Once these symptoms manifest themselves completely, then it can take years to heal the problem. Therefore, it’s better to nip this problem in the bud by paying attention to the early symptoms and then enrolling yourself in a rotator cuff exercise program. The pain killers do not heal the cause of the problem; they just take care of the symptoms which worsen when the effects wear off.
People who are into heavy physical activity or sports need to really pay good attention to torn rotator cuff symptoms. When the inflammation increases, then problems like frozen shoulder can even cause disability.
The best way to prevent torn rotator cuff symptoms from affecting your life is to get diagnosed and treated early. The diagnostic tools used to establish a torn rotator cuff include x-rays, ultrasound, MRI, arthograms and physical examination. The treatment depends on the severity of the injury and of the torn rotator cuff symptoms; these may include heat or cold, exercise and stretching, physical therapy and in very severe cases, steroids.
Tom Nicholson has spent years caring for sufferers of carpal tunnel syndrome. You can follow this link to find out more about having asore wrist.