One of the most common injuries of the shoulder involves the rotator cuff. But exactly what is the rotator cuff and what does it do?

Kennedy Brothers Physical Therapy out of Boston posted a very good article about the rotator cuff written in easy-to-understand terms. Their article includes:

• a description of the shoulder joint (anatomy) and why the shoulder can be easily injured
• an explanation of shoulder impingement
• how rotator cuff tendonitis can occur
• ways to prevent shoulder injuries

Another very good blog post from Commonwealth Sports Medicine, entitled – Shoulder Impingement – states that shoulder impingement syndorme “affects at least half of all overhead athletes at some point in their career.”

I especially like their analogy of comparing the precariousness of the shoulder joint to “taking a golf tee and balancing a basketball on top of it- an unstable situation.”

Check out their suggestions for dealing with this injury – rest, ice, strengthening and stretching the rotator cuff and more.

Excellent Shoulder Anatomy Video

This is the best video I’ve seen describing the function and anatomy of the shoulder joint. If you want to know more about how your shoulder functions, then watch the video.

We (the Rotater Guys) head to St. Louis

In 2006,Scott Kay introduced a very crude prototype of the shoulder rehab and stretching device that he had invented to athletic trainers at the National Athletic Trainer Association’s annual conference that was being held in Atlanta.

Because of the response that the Rotater received in Atlanta, Scott proceeded with the development of his shoulder rehab and stretching device – which is now in mass production.

The NATA conference will be at the America’s Center Convention Center in St. Louis. If you’re in the area, then stop by booth #2242. We’d love to meet you and answer your questions.

Bowhunters need Strong Shoulders

(photo courtesy of sorenson photo)

I live in the deep south, Alabama to be exact. Down here, people take their hunting seriously, so if it’s not hunting season, then it’s a good time to get ready for hunting season.

The Hunt Doctors (they are “real” medical doctors) have written “Strengthening Your Shoulders For Bowhunting” in which they explain a little shoulder anatomy in everyday hunter terms and outline a number of exercises to help you develop your shoulder strength. By the way, some of the bows that serious hunters use can require extreme shoulder strength to pull back and then hold for an extended period of time while you wait for the perfect shot. If you think it’s easy, then go to your local hunting store and give it a try.

Should you “work” through a Shoulder Injury?

(photo courtesy of LollyKnit)

A question posed on Stronglifts.com asks about persistent pain in the shoulder and whether to continue lifting weights. “What should I do?” Mehdi’s explanation describes:

• the muscle involved, specifically the infraspinatus ( good illustrations )
• some of the causes of infraspinatus injuries
• some of the symptoms of this rotator cuff injury
• some of the ways to deal with this shoulder problem

Mehdi concludes by giving this advice:

“Stay away from painkillers. Pain is your body telling you something is wrong. Find out what. Educate yourself. Ask your doctor’s advice. But make sure you treat the causes, not the symptoms.

Take it slowly with weight lifting in the meanwhile. Lower the weight, spend time improving technique & slowly build back up. Don’t worry about strength loss, getting rid of injuries is more important in the long run.”

Tips for Preventing Shoulder Injuries in Young Pitchers

(photo courtesy of wjklos)

Brooke deLench, author and noted expert on youth related sports issues has written “Preventing Pitching Injuries” in which she educates parents on some of the things that they can do. She says that there are a number of things that parents and coaches can do to prevent shoulder injuries which include:

• ensure proper conditioning
• teach correct throwing mechanics
• always warmup and stretch
• place limits on pitches
• don’t allow your child to play through the pain

This is a great article that will educate a parent on how to help their future Cy Young award winner to avoid arm and shoulder injuries. If you are a parent, and your child pitches, then you need to read this article.

Smoltz believes rehab will start soon – by Mark Bowman

Smotz, who went on the disabled list on April 26^th due to inflammation of his rotator cuff and biceps tendon plans to throw from the mound for the first time this Saturday. read Mark Bowman’s article on MLB.com

Rangers’ Bradley out with a sore shoulder

Milton Bradley, the designated hitter for the Texas Rangers was pulled in the 7^th inning of Monday nights game with the Mariners due to a sore shoulder and probably will not return to the line up until Friday.

Prior takes step back in rehab – by Jon Greenburg

The latest on Mark Prior was that is that he was scheduled to undergo an MRI this past Monday to access the condition of his shoulder. Jon Greenburg reports that there is the possibility of a trip to Birmingham Alabama to see Dr. James Andrews, the prominent orthopedic surgeon who performed arthroscopic surgery on Mark in 2007. read Jon Greenburg’s article

Schilling throws from 60

Amalie Benjamin reported that Curt Schilling threw from 60 ft. this past Sunday (May 11th), though Andrew Johnson notes that Schilling “had a sizeable bag of ice” on his shoulder on Tuesday (May 13th).

Schilling’s last blog post entitled Getting the ‘go ahead’ which he posted on May 6^th seemed guarded. Schilling said that he feels healthy and confident, but the “doing it” still had to be done. Personally, I hope he “does it”.

Posada rehabbing in Tampa with Alex Rodriguez

Yankee catcher, Jorge Posada is in Tampa at the Yankee training facility where he played catch this past Monday while rehabbing his inflamed rotator cuff. Tyler Kepner reports that he will be out until at least early June.

Frozen Shoulder – What’s the 411?

(photo courtesy of Joe Shlabotnik)

Lauran Neergaard an AP medical writer has written an article entitled “Early Care Helps Frozen Shoulder” in which she illustrates some of the mysteries surrounding frozen shoulder.

• Why doesn’t adhesive capsulitis (frozen shoulder) affect the same shoulder twice?
• Why does frozen shoulder occur most often in women?
• Why does frozen shoulder sometimes migrate to the other shoulder?

Please note the title of Lauran’s article – Early Care Helps Frozen Shoulder. If you’re having shoulder issues and you fit the demographics outlined in the article and you don’t remember injuring your shoulder, then don’t waste any time - see your physician immediately.

Basic Shoulder Rehabilitation

Mednets has produced a basic, but thorough Patient Information Guide to Shoulder Rehabilitation with real pictures of shoulder rehab exercises (not drawings) and clear, understandable instructions that describe how the various exercises are to be performed.

It’s not flashy. It’s not high-tech. All of the exercises can be performed at home with items that you already have or can easily acquire.

What is a Rotator Cuff Injury?

Ask almost anyone this question and you’re likely to get a wide variety of vague answers. So what is a rotator cuff injury? Here is a very short (about 45 seconds) and very basic video animation that does a very good job of illustrating and explaining the injury. I must warn you that you will have to sit through a short commercial (about 30 seconds) at the beginning.

Shoulder Rehab for Baseball Pitchers

(photo courtesy of Glover Bryant Communications)

Kris Bensen, a starting pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles, has written an article – Shoulder Rehab: A Shoulder Rehab Throwing Program For Baseball Pitchers. Kris describes a progressive throwing program designed to rehab a pitcher’s shoulder while rebuilding his arm strength.

Shoulder Strength and Stabilization

(photo courtesy of Cronfeld)

Mark Dilworth, a certified fitness trainer, former NCAA division I athlete and creator of My Fitness Hut Blog wrote an article entitled “Strengthen and Stabilize Your Shoulder Girdle”.

Mark explains three of the most common shoulder injuries (frozen shoulder, shoulder tendonitis and rotator cuff injury) and some of the steps that you can take during your training to avoid them.

The King of Lifts – The Bench Press

The bench press is the one lift that everyone knows. I don’t know why – it just is. I can remember when I was fourteen and someone asked me what my bench was. I think I could probably bench 100 lbs. then.

The small muscles of the rotator cuff will limit your max

I’m 46 now and have had shoulder reconstruction on one shoulder and I’ve torn my rotator cuff a couple of times on the other shoulder. As you approach middle-age, your joints, specifically the shoulders for upper body lifts, tend to be the limiting factors in determining how much you can bench. What can you do? (photo used courtesy of jason.lengstorf)

Unconventional rotator cuff exercises

I discovered “Back to Form” Fitness by Keith Scott today and have added this blog to my blogroll. You should check it out. Anyway, Keith has written an article for Men’s Fitness entitled “Press More Pounds” that everyone who works out with weights should read.

He describes how to use a small medicine ball to warm up and activate your rotater cuff muscles prior to hitting the bench. Give his program a try and then amaze your friends.

I expect to have my bench press max up to 135 lbs. any day now.

Urban rotator cuff exercises

On a lighter note, I found the following video showing “urban rotator cuff” exercises on Straight to the Bar. I’m not really sure of the advantages of doing this type of rotator cuff exercise when you can accomplish the same movement using a very light weight ( ten pounds – max ) or a milk jug filled with water. Take a look anyway – it’s an ingenious though somewhat dangerous movement in my humble opinion.

(photo by soldiersmediacenter)

The basic question of the study was:

Is there any advantage to surgically repairing an initial dislocated shoulder on a young, athletic person vs. allowing the injured shoulder to heal in a more conservative, non-surgical fashion?

The conclusion:

Yes, for the group who participated in the study, there were both short– and long-term advantages to having their dislocated shoulders surgically repaired instead of taking the more conservative approach. 

How easy is it to dislocate your shoulder?

As I was doing my initial research into dislocated shoulders, I began to wonder – How easy is it to dislocate your shoulder?  I suffered a separated shoulder (which is a different injury) during a fall while skiing.  What about others?

Bodybuilder dislocates shoulder while closing car trunk

Stew Smith wrote an article entitled “Taking Care of Your Shoulders” in which an avid weight-lifter and bodybuilder wrote in and described how he had dislocated his shoulder while closing the trunk of his car.  Hey, if a big guy like that can dislocate his shoulder that easy, what does that mean for me.  Not much.

Here is a video that demonstrates just how easy it is to dislocate your shoulder

Please don’t try this at home.  I can assure you that it is painful and it takes time to heal – with or without surgery!  And you may be more susceptible to future dislocations as well.

According to Wikipedia – “The shoulder joint is the most frequently dislocated major joint of the body. In a typical case of a dislocated shoulder, a strong force that pulls the shoulder outward (abduction) or extreme rotation of the joint pops the ball of the humerus out of the shoulder socket. Dislocation commonly occurs when there is a backward pull on the arm that either catches the muscles unprepared to resist or overwhelms the muscles.”

Small group of muscles hold your most versatile joint together

It doesn’t matter how big you are, the same small muscle group holds the ball of your humerus and glenoid (socket) together.  They are the group of small muscles that form the rotator cuff. Here are some excellent images.

Exercises that you can do to strengthen the rotator cuff complex

It has been a few months since I met the Rotater gang at the APTA conference in Denver, CO. I was quite intrigued with their product, and purchased one for use in my clinic. Since then, the Rotater has been used daily and I am in need of a new one or three.

The Rotater itself has proved invaluable to my patients� shoulders and their subsequent recovery. It has been used for a variety of overuse, sports, orthopedic, and post-surgical conditions to date, and on a large group of patients as well. Everyone from grandma with adhesive capsulitis to the major league baseball pitcher has reaped its benefits, and I look forward to many more.

In fact, I am currently planning a youth baseball camp for the little leagues in my area. I plan on performing mechanical examinations and coaching; rotator cuff, scapular, and core strengthening; and shoulder stretching (with the Rotater of course). I�ll keep you guys updated with the progress on the camp.

In summary, great job guys! I truly appreciate your ingenuity in creating the Rotater. It has been a great addition to my clinic. Keep up the good work.

Sincerely,

Kevin Rausch, MPT, CSCS
Rausch Physical Therapy, INC.
www.rauschpt.net

We met Kevin Rausch in August of 2007 at the American Physical Therapy Association�s annual convention. Kevin was introducing a revolutionary rehabilitation service that combines the convenience of a menu of internet based rehabilitation exercises with the expertise of member physical therapists.

An idea that is grabbing the attention of the press

Kevin�s internet based exercise program has caught the attention of Physical Therapy Products magazine, where his program has been featured a number of times.

Products on the Market ( Oct 2007 ) � a section of Physical Therapy Products magazine that features new and innovative products for the physical therapist. Scroll down to �Web-based Exercise Programs�

Soap Notes ( Dec 2007) � Physical therapy products.

Fitness Focus ( Jan 2008 ) � an article by Alan Ruskin entitled �Exercise Software�.

Visit Home Programs.net to find out if Kevin can help you.

In September, Scott and I went to the PGA expo in Las Vegas. The PGA expo is an event that brings professionals from the golf world (course owners/managers, teaching professionals, golf shop owners, sponsored professionals, golf publication editors/owners/writers, etc.) in contact with vendors and suppliers of golf-related products and services. These events are not open to the public.

LOT OF INTERESTING PEOPLE

Scott and I have quite a bit of fun at trade shows. We are both �people� people, so it is very easy for us to meet and interact with others while demonstrating the Rotater. For us, a PGA show had been the last venue that we thought would use or benefit from the Rotater. Boy, were we wrong!

We met a number of interesting people there:

• a former amateur winner of the U.S. Open � he uses the Rotater daily
• a long drive champion � another avid user (look for a testimonial soon)
• magazine owners/writers/editors � we have done an interview for one publication set to be released in the spring
• a television show host � who has contacted us about appearing on his show this spring
• PGA teaching professionals

SENIOR PROFESSIONAL GIVES TESTIMONIAL

One of the golfing professionals who tried the Rotater and immediately recognized its benefits was Dusty O�Tyrrell. He has contacted us a number of times and has told us that he has developed some golf-specific exercises with the Rotater. The following is an email that we received from Dusty yesterday.

Hey Rotater Guys,

Just a quick note to tell you about how this thing has worked out for me. As I told you a while back, my right shoulder rotator cuff and shoulder joint were injured in a fall from a chair that had broken. After checking into the surgery aspect I found out that doing surgery was completely out of the question.

So, its into physical therapy and other exercise stuff to get this thing to heal. My Doc had told me that with proper therapies, I would likely heal well in a three to four year period. Why so long you did not ask? Because as a professional golfer, the use of this shoulder is paramount to my making a living. I must play and practice every day. It�s my JOB! And it ain�t that glorious either. It�s a JOB. Hot, sweaty and physically draining. It�s supposed to be mentally draining as well but I�m not very mental. And to think, I gave up an office job for this!

Well anyway, I met you guys and the Rotater and this little beauty has become my three to four times a day shoulder exercise device. My range of motion has improved immensely and I use it on both shoulders, even though only the right one was injured. My Doc loves this thing because it causes the shoulder to move correctly in the directions necessary for the correct exercises. I am now back to playing (and note: the fellows who had surgery NO LONGER PLAY and are on restricted cortisone use!) and my strength and stuff is just as it should be.

As I�ve told you, I tell everyone who�ll listen about it�the Rotater, and let them use mine�but not keep it! Don�t know how many have contacted you but I tell them use my name and maybe you�ll give them a special deal! What the heck�it�s worth a try ain�t it?

So there you go. I�m a great fan of the thing and will remain so.

Best to both of you,

Dusty O�Tyrrell
Senior Professional Golfer
P.O. Box 499
Death Valley, California 92328

“It’s my rotator cuff” or “I’ve torn my rotator” or “It’s an old rotator cuff injury from high school”

How do they know? Did they go have it diagnosed? What exactly is a rotator cuff tear? Will it fall off? Can someone explain it to me?

There’s a fantastic article published in eOrthopod entitled “A Patient’s Guide to Rotator Cuff Tears”. Great pictures and detailed explanations.