Shoulder pain

Shoulder pain is one of the most frequently consulted physician complaints. It can be caused by any condition in the muscles, joints or surrounding tissues in your shoulder. Sometimes, disorders in the neck, chest and lung diaphragm can also cause pain that radiates to the shoulder. Most shoulder pain is caused by extra-articular structures. In case of pain that does not go away within a week or two, consult your doctor.

Apart from fractures and dislocations, which are obvious causes of shoulder pain, the most common causes of shoulder pain are inflammatory conditions of the cushions called bursa around the joint, inflammation of the tendons, inflammation of the tendons and membranes, and damage to the joint capsule.

If there is pain, tenderness and limitation of movement in the shoulder, the first thing that comes to mind is tendinitis or bursitis. Bursitis may also become calcified. It can also be a sudden onset or long-standing condition.



There may also be a situation where the shoulder cannot be moved at all. In cases where the shoulder cannot turn inward and there is pain while moving the arm, inflammation in the joint surfaces where the tendons and tendons are attached comes to mind. In these cases, there may not be any X-ray findings.

Sometimes after a trauma, the joint capsule may be forced and inflammation may occur. In these cases, widespread sensitivity around the joint and decreased movements may occur.

Sometimes tendon ruptures or ruptures may also occur. In this case, when the arm is raised, it cannot be lowered in a controlled manner by the patient and falls.

In some cases, in addition to shoulder pain, painful swelling may occur in the hand. Even hand tensions can occur. Inability to close the fingers can be seen. These conditions are referred to as reflex neurovascular dystrophy. This condition can also occur as a result of acute myocardial infarction, cervical osteoarthritis, trauma, hemiplegia or some other conditions.

The most common causes of shoulder pain are:

• Joint damage
  • Damage to the surrounding tissues of the joint
    • Calcific tendinitis
    • Adhesive capsulitis
    • Bicipital tendinitis
    • Musculotendinous cuff lesions
  • Damages in the joint
    • Inflammatory lesions
      • Connective tissue diseases
      • Rheumatoid diseases
      • Crystal arthropathies
    • Osteoarthritis
    • Neuropathic arthropathy
    • Infectious arthritis
    • Neoplasms
  • Extra-articular causes
    • Neurological problems
      • Central nervous system problems
        • Cervical disc damages
        • Herpes zoster
      • Problems arising from peripheral nerves
        • Neuropathies
      • Neurovascular syndromes
        • Thoracic outlet syndromes
          • Cervical or first rib syndromes, scalenus anterior syndrome
          • Costoclavicular syndrome
          • Hyperabduction syndrome
        • Reflex neurovascular syndromes
          • Shoulder-hand syndrome
          • Sudeck atrophy
        • Vascular syndromes
          • Arterial causes
            • Arterial occlusion
            • Raynaud’s phenomenon
          • Venous causes
            • Venous occlusion
            • Thrombophlebitis
          • Lymphatic causes
            • Lymphangitis
            • Lymphedema
          • Psychogenic disorders
          • Referred pain of internal organs (referred pain)
          • Idiopathic causes
            • Fibrocytic syndromes
            • Myalgias
            • Neuralgias

If you have sudden onset and severe shoulder pain, swelling in your shoulder, fever or loss of sensation, seek help from the nearest emergency room or 112 emergency service. Since shoulder pain can be treated according to the cause, waiting for it to go away on its own may cause the condition to become chronic or make your health problem more costly.