Supraspinatus Impingement

[johnflitcroft]

To Physioblue or anybody else that can help.

I have been diagnosed with a supraspinatus(rotator cuff) impingement in the right shoulder. It was caused by over arm throwing (like in handball and water polo, also the ball used is the same as in water polo) and maybe bad posture of working in front of a PC. I have had it for more than 3 years, so I think I have gone pass the acute stage and now in the chronic stage.

I have recently bought a powerball and was hoping it would help with the treatment/rehab of my shoulder. Also I have read some of your articles related to shoulder injuires posted on the forum and was wondering if some of the exercises you mention would help with treating/rehab of my supraspinatus impingement.

Any advice would kindly be appreciated.

[petemayhew]

Hi John

The powerball should help rehab of your shoulder if used correctly. I'm no Physio but if you use the powerball for around 20 minutes a day, use it for 10 minutes in the morning and 10 minutes at night, then it should ease any pain/stiffness/soreness in your shoulder. When your spinning the ball just make sure your working the shoulder joint by having your arm raised off the side of your body and you can lift it up to wherever it feels comfortable. I personally think lifting your arm up until it makes a right angle with the side of your body really works the shoulder.

Physioblue will probably know all about your supraspinatus impingement and help you with the specifics but the above seems a reasonable routine for rehabilitation, note you can go for longer if you feel comfortable.

If this is all jargon to you and your having trouble with starting the ball, keeping the ball going or any technique related issues then just post back in and ask. :)

Pete.

[Physioblue]

Yo,
Its been a busy few days for me on this forum!
Still, I love it really. :D

Supraspinatus impingement is more often than not actually due to an inflamed "bursa" in the shoulder. A bursa is just a fluid filled sack that is supposed to stop things rubbing together. Anyway, the bursa impinges the supraspinatus tendon and makes lifting the arm sideways painful. And 3 years is a hell of a long time.

So I think we can assume the problem is not going to go away on its own.
Now comes the bad part. The powerball will not help your shoulder get better. The bursa is (IMHO) chronically inflamed and something needs to be done about this. My guess? You need an injection into the bursa. Some physio's and a lot of doctors can do this. (I can!!! :D)

Now comes the really bad part. This will only last for around 6 weeks. :(

But, the good news (and there is some!), is that, if you can address the thing that caused the problem in the first place you can stop it coming back. And what could cause it? Posture like you say, but also an imbalance in the strength in your shoulder.
And thats where our friend comes in.

If you can get painfree (injection, or anti-inflammatories if they work), then watch your posture, spin your powerball like pete said above, and hopefully it won't come back.

Good luck:)