Helping a patient with persistent, disabling shoulder pain

This time, a gentleman had been struggling with his right shoulder for quite a few month. His response to previous physiotherapy treatment was poor. At Rugby Physio, we aimed to get his shoulder feeling better and back to function. But, we needed to do our assessments first.

Our history taking looked at this gentleman’s shoulder pain, the severity, how it impacted his life, how and when the pain comes on and what reduces the symptoms. We looked at his sleeping habits, his work duties, eating habits, exercise habits and mental health. 

The clinical assessment demonstrated:

  • Stiffness in the mid spine.
  • Stiffness in cervical spine in neck rotation and extension.
  • Right shoulder stiffness with pain on mid to end of range overhead movements.
  • A marked capsular pattern of the right shoulder.

Based on our clinical assessment findings, we began treatment:

  • Manual therapy applied to the thoracic spine.
  • Manual therapy applied to the right shoulder joint.
  • A mobility home exercise programme to completed between the physio sessions.
  • A shoulder blade strengthening programme to be completed between the physio sessions.

On the 3rd physio sessions, the shoulder failed to improve. We requested an X-Ray which proved there was nothing wrong with the shoulder joint itself. At Rugby Physio, we would always seek a second opinion from fellow health care practitioners. We want to ensure our patients get the best care by seeing the most appropriate person for the job. In this case, we sought an opinion from a local shoulder surgeon who we work closely with.

The shoulder surgeon took our concerns on board and provided an MRI scan followed by a shoulder injection. This improved the shoulder pain and mobility significantly and upon returning to Rugby Physio for further expert physio led rehabilitation, end stage shoulder rehabilitation was conducted with a focus on functional goals. He was successfully discharged from Rugby Physio at 100% pain free and with full function.

Rugby Physio will always work with other specialists as a multidisciplinary approach to getting you better with the right care. It is team work.