Rotator Cuff Injury
Your rotator cuff is comprised of the muscles and tendons surrounding your shoulder joint. Sometimes, the rotator cuff can become torn or injured, due to repetitive overhead motions performed in sports (such as tennis) or jobs (such as carpentry.) Those who experience rotator cuff injuries or “torn shoulders” generally report a dull ache deep in their shoulder, arm weakness, difficulty reaching behind their backs, and disturbed sleep due to pain. At Empower Physical Therapy, our natural and non-invasive methods can help relieve your shoulder pain and heal your rotator cuff injury.
While rotator cuff injuries sometimes require surgery if they are severe enough, there are several cases where physical therapy treatments can work just as well (if not better) than surgery. According to the American Physical Therapy Association, “A recent study from Finland asserts that when it comes to treatment of nontraumatic rotator cuff tears, physical therapy alone produces results equal to those produced by arthroscopic surgery and open surgical repair.” In this same study, a follow-up on 167 patients receiving physical therapy alone for their rotator cuff injuries, demonstrated that conservative treatment, such as physical therapy, should be considered as the primary treatment for this condition.
At Empower Physical Therapy, we will conduct a physical evaluation and diagnostic tests to determine if you do indeed have a rotator cuff tear, and we will design a personalized treatment plan based on the needs of your diagnosis.
Find relief through physical therapy:
Physical therapy is a natural, easy, and comfortable way to find relief for shoulder pain, without the need for harmful drugs or invasive surgery. Our Wasilla and Anchorage physical therapists have treated a number of conditions resulting in shoulder pain, with patients finding improvement and relief after just a few short sessions – and sometimes less!
Our physical therapists are movement experts, trained to pinpoint the cause of your pain through a variety of diagnostic techniques. During your evaluation, we will examine your range of motion, strength, coordination, your medical history, joint mobility, and mechanics of your joint motion.
Once we have established the cause of your shoulder pain, our physical therapists can create a specialized combination of physical therapy methods to manage and relieve your pain. Gentle manual therapy helps to restore normal joint movement, ease soft tissue restrictions, and promote circulation, while specific therapeutic exercises restore strength, and the correct sequence of muscle activation around the shoulder joint. Finally, we teach you techniques to enhance your strength and to prevent recurrence of future shoulder problems.
Don’t let your shoulder pain limit your physical abilities any longer! Our Wasilla and Anchorage, AK physical therapy practice will get you the help you need to start living your normal life once again. Call Empower Physical Therapy today to request your appointment or free consult and get started on your path toward pain-relief.
