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The rotator cuff is a group of tendons connecting the four muscles of the upper shoulder to the upper arm. They run under the acromion where they are vulnerable to being pinched or damaged. This can lead to a tear, resulting in a painful, weak shoulder. Tears result from a single traumatic event or develop gradually, leading to difficulty lifting or rotating your arm. Pain can be associated with shoulder motion.
It is normal for the rotator cuff tendon to wear/degrade with age. The rotator cuff becomes weak and prone to rupture or tear, causing pain and weakness of the shoulder.
This injury is often caused by trauma, usually from trying to lift or catch a heavy object. It can also be caused by overuse after a period of inactivity and by poor blood supply to the area of the cuff, which can occur with increasing age. Falling on the outstretched arm can bring the symptoms on as can gradual weakening of the tendons of the shoulder associated with impingement.
Many factors are considered in diagnosing rotator cuff tears. Subjective history including mechanism of injury, activities that aggravate or ease pain, current limitations to function and physical examination findings. Additionally, diagnostic imaging is used to confirm the diagnosis. We use ultrasound scans or occasionally MRI scans.
You can see any of our practitioners for most conditions but check out their profiles for more information and specific interests. If you have already tried physical therapies, then you should book in with one of our doctors.
Check out our services pages to find out more about these therapies. Practitioners are trained to treat most conditions but do this in slightly different ways. They work together to find the best treatment most suited to your condition.
Your practitioner will choose an appropriate treatment programme for you depending on the severity of your injury. You may need referral for an MRI or need an ultrasound diagnosis and if there is complete rupture you may need surgery. There are many treatments, as seen below, which are available for this condition.
After a course of Prolotherapy my back pain has gone and I live a normal life. I can’t thank Dr Petrides enough for giving me back my quality of life
Following treatment at Blackberry Clinic, Milton Keynes my back pain improved and I could play for my country again
Just wanted to say please pass my thanks to my osteopath, I came yesterday with terrible back and shoulder pain and today I am pain free, am well delighted as had a day planned with friends was worried I wouldn’t enjoy, please pass my thanks onto her.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that Lorena has changed my life. Four months ago, having been diagnosed as having “severe, acute and chronic” disc degeneration I genuinely thought I was facing a life of disability (I am 49).
Lorena has re-taught me how to move my body and how to think about what muscles I engage to a point that I am now running, swimming and doing pilates again and have almost full flexibility in my spine. It almost feels like Lorena can see through your skin to your muscles, so profound is her understanding of how the body moves.
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