Rotator cuff injuries are a very common cause of shoulder pain. These injuries tend to become more common as you get older, because of the degeneration that occurs in your muscles and tendons as you age. There are some things you can do to minimise your risk of injury, and help you recover from a rotator cuff injury so you can return to exercising soon.

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WHAT IS THE

ROTATOR CUFF?

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There are 4 small muscles that go around your shoulder joint, and help it move through its great range of motion - up, down, and all around. These muscles are the Supraspinatus, the Infraspinatus, the Teres Minor, and the Subscapularis. These muscles lie under the larger muscles around your shoulder (like the deltoid muscle), but while they are a lot smaller than these other muscles, they are vitally important for good shoulder function.

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Of note, the Supraspinatus is a small muscle that helps you elevate your arm up your side to an overhead position. It is commonly injured in conditions affecting the rotator cuff, and any inflammation in this muscle or its tendon causes pain when you try to lift something overhead. The tendon of this muscle can be caught under a small bony spur that can sometimes develop. This is called impingement, and it causes pain with overhead activities.

WHAT IS CAUSING PAIN IN MY ROTATOR CUFF?

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There are a few causes of pain stemming from your rotator cuff. 

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If you over use these small muscles in your shoulder, you can have some inflammation in the muscles and in the tendons. This is known as 'cuff tendinitis', and is very common. It can happen to anyone at any age, but becomes a lot more common as you grow older. You can trigger this tendinitis when you overuse your shoulder, especially with overhead movements, or with carrying heavy loads.

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HOW DO I KNOW IF I HAVE A ROTATOR CUFF INJURY?

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An injury in the muscle will cause pain when

(i) you perform the body movement that the particular muscle is in charge of doing, or (ii) when you stretch the injured muscle.

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Persistent pain in your shoulder, which gets worse as you move your arm around and overhead, indicates a problem with your rotator cuff. This can range from something minor like some mild inflammation in the muscle or tendons, to an actual tear due to injury.

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It's difficult for you to tell how bad the injury may be since your shoulder pain can be quite bad in it's initial stages.

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Although there are several muscles that make up the rotator cuff, you can pinpoint the likely culprit for your shoulder pain by looking at the shoulder movements that trigger your pain.

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Testing for these movements can be a bit technical, so you should get a doctor yo have a look at your shoulder if you're having pain with specific shoulder movements.

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HOW DID I INJURE  MY ROTATOR CUFF?

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It is relatively easy to injure your rotator cuff because these muscles tend to be comparatively smaller than other muscles in your body, and we tend to overwork our shoulder since we use our arms in nearly every aspect of our daily lives.

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Think about any one thing you've done today. You probably used your shoulder doing it, and your rotator cuff muscles were highly instrumental in letting you do so. For some of us with very physically demanding jobs, the risk of straining these muscles is inherently higher simply because we tend to overuse and strain these muscles and tendons.

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WHAT CAN I DO?

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If you train your rotator cuff muscles regularly and strengthen them up, you're less likely to strain them after a bout of strenuous exercise, or carrying some heavy loads.

Having said that, a lot of us do not actually train our rotator cuff muscles regularly. Even if you exercise regularly, a lot of people wouldn't actually take the effort to train your rotator cuff muscles up to keep them strong and healthy, since the isolation movements we need to train them are not something we tend to incorporate into our training routines.

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There are some simple stretches and strengthening exercises you can try, check them out in our home therapy page.

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You can do these exercises 2 to 3 times a week to keep your rotator cuff healthy. Physiotherapy is something that can help you tremendously, but only if you perform it correctly and consistently. Put the time in today, to keep your shoulder working hard, pain-free!

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WRAP IT UP!

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Shoulder pain can be a bothersome issue because it's very easy to strain the small muscles in your rotator cuff. We have an article on cuff tendonitis as well, do give it a read if you want to learn more! You can also read our article on some simple shoulder stretches and exercises you can try at home on our home therapy page.