Providing natural shoulder pain after surgery

Providing natural shoulder pain after surgery

A painful condition of the shoulder is a common complaint. Shoulder pain is the third most common cause of musculoskeletal problems. Two-thirds of adults will have shoulder problems at some point in their lives. A painful shoulder most commonly occurs in middle age (40-65 years).

Some patients' shoulder pain is such that they need to undergo surgery. Many will achieve great pain relief. However, some will continue to have a painful shoulder even after surgery. This article discusses a natural method to relieve shoulder pain after surgery. It will also present research detailing a non-surgical, drug-free approach to treating postoperative shoulder problems with persistent pain, as well as two successful case study presentations.

As a practicing chiropractor for over 35 years, I have treated many people for shoulder pain. It is a complex joint. There are several bones, bursae, tendons, muscles, and ligaments that connect to the shoulder. There is also a fibrous capsule containing fluid that surrounds the joint. It is a joint that moves in all directions.

A very important feature of the shoulder is that it is connected to our neck, also known as the cervical spine. Nerves emerge from openings between the bones of the cervical spine, which travel to muscles that help the joint move freely and properly.

Chiropractic treatment for shoulder pain aims to improve incorrect movements or misalignments of the bones of the cervical spine and thus improve the muscle function of the shoulder joint. In addition, treatment aimed at injury to the shoulder joint itself must be treated with chiropractic care.

I remember a patient named George who came to me after rotator cuff surgery. His surgery had significantly improved his shoulder movement, but he still had moderate discomfort with certain shoulder movements. When I examined George, I found that he had some misalignment of the bones in his neck and some limited mobility of the bones in his shoulder socket. Chiropractic manipulation (sometimes called a chiropractic adjustment) helped realign his spine and restore normal movement to the shoulder joint. Afterwards, George had full shoulder pain relief and normal shoulder movement.

Another patient of mine, Tom, had surgery for a shoulder labrum tear. His recovery was initially quite good, but seemed to plateau a few months after surgery. He said his pain levels improved by about 80% with the surgery. However, he still experienced mild postoperative shoulder pain, both at rest and during activity. My examination of Tom revealed spinal misalignment in the neck and upper back and some limited movement of the scapula, known to most people as the scapula. Through chiropractic adjustments, we restored proper movement and alignment to these areas and Tom had complete resolution of his shoulder discomfort.

A 2018 research study showed that postoperative shoulder patients with persistent pain who received spinal manipulation significantly increased shoulder motion and stability. Other studies have reported similar improvement in pain, motion, and shoulder stability when chiropractic treatment was performed postoperatively for persistent shoulder pain.

Most patients who go to chiropractors find that a chiropractic adjustment is a safe and comfortable experience because it corrects misalignments of the spine and blocked movements of fixed limb joints.

For this reason, many patients turn to natural, drug-free, gentle chiropractic treatment for shoulder pain relief after surgery.

Inspired by James Schofield