help!!! injured shoulder in may and my shoulder became frozen per ortho drs -have tried many things rehab,acupuncture (2 times to date) still have very limited mobility and still have pain any suggestions?

The Mayo Clinic has what appears to be a very good article on Frozen shoulder.


The article contains the following topics:

Article Sections
Introduction
Signs and symptoms
Causes
Risk factors
When to seek medical advice
Screening and diagnosis
Treatment
Self-care
Complementary and alternative medicine

quote:

Introduction

Frozen shoulder, also known as adhesive capsulitis, is a condition characterized by stiffness and pain in your shoulder joint. In one stage of the disorder — the freezing stage — your shoulder's range of motion is notably reduced. Frozen shoulder usually affects one shoulder at a time, although some people may eventually develop it in the opposite shoulder.

With treatments recommended by their doctors and through self-care efforts, most people eventually regain nearly full shoulder range of motion and strength as signs and symptoms improve.

Some treatments can include but are not limited to the following. You can ask your doctors for references to physicians that provide alternative traetments if they are not adequately managing your problems, now.

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). These medications may help relieve pain and inflammation associated with frozen shoulder. Acetaminophen (Tylenol, others) also may be effective for pain relief.

Heat or cold. Applying heat or cold to your shoulder can help relieve pain.

Corticosteroids. Injecting these anti-inflammatory hormones into your shoulder joint can help decrease pain during the initial painful phase. However, they do little to improve your shoulder's range of motion and repeated corticosteroid injections aren't recommended.

Surgery. In a small number of cases, surgery is an option to remove scar tissue and adhesions from inside your shoulder joint. Doctors usually perform this surgery with a lighted, tubular instrument inserted through an incision in your joint (arthroscopically).
Shoulder manipulation. In a few people, if severe stiffness persists, gently manipulating the shoulder during a general anesthetic may help to improve motion.

Electrical stimulation. Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) is a treatment that can be used to help control your pain. In this procedure, a tiny electrical current is delivered to key points on a nerve pathway. The current, delivered through electrodes taped to your skin, isn't painful or harmful. It's not known exactly how TENS works, but it's thought that it might stimulate the release of pain-inhibiting molecules (endorphins) or block pain fibers that carry pain impulses.

nedrag: I had a frozen left shoulder a few years ago, and a regimen of some easy exercises did the trick. First, take a can or saucepan, if you do not have a 2-lb. weight, and roll your arm around in a circle 5 times forward, 5 times backward, 5 times in front right to left, and 5 times in front left to right. I did 5 on the bad arm and 5 on the good arm, alternating until finished. Second, I enjoyed what I call the roach crawl, which is to go up the wall with your fingertips 5 times slowly. I did each arm, alternating 5 times. Third, there is the one of lifting the weight up and down a few times while lying in bed, but I did not do this one. Fourth, the very best one is the towel in which you pretend to be drying your back first with the towel below the affected shoulder and then with the towel below the unaffected shoulder. I told myself that I was firming my upper arms, and these exercises became enjoyable and loosened the frozen shoulder more and more each day surprisingly quickly. Caution: do each of these exercises only once per day. I got these exercises from a doctor.

i have tried some of these and have alot of trouble with them(PAIN) i have no mobility to move my arm back should i just try to do them slowly even though i can not do them completely?

nedrag: The idea is to just do what you can, because the shoulder can take weeks even months to get back to normal. You should notice that the fingers of your hand will gradually reach higher and higher up your back.

nedrag...I agree completely with tsaeb, give it time.

I injured my shoulder a couple of years ago and ended up having surgery on my rotator cuff.

My surgery was almost 2 years ago, and now I have incredible mobility, hardly every having any discomfort, unless I try to pick up something too heavy.

Any injury to a major joint (shoulder, knee, etc) is going to take a long time to heal because we use these joints for everything!

I just realized that we neglected to emphasize what may have caused our frozen shoulders. Mine was caused, believe it or not, by leaning on my left elbow and staring at my computer screen while building my website, participating here, etc. So if nedrag is continuing to experience pain, one cause may be poor posture while surfing, etc. at the computer.

thanks for all the advise

it still is bothering me but i do hope to have all motion back one day---thanks

Very good point tsaeb - Mine was actually due to a fall I had. I know that many problems are caused by posture and repetitive motion issues.

I hope you are able to find something that can give you some relief and mobility nedrag!