CONDITION: Frozen Shoulder (Adhesive Capsulitis)

DESCRIPTION:

Frozen shoulder, medically referred to as adhesive capsulitis, is a general term for a variety of causes of loss of motion in the shoulder. It can result in an inability to lift or difficulty with lifting one’s arm above one’s head, reaching across the body or reaching behind the back.

How does frozen shoulder develop?
The term adhesive capsulitis refers to scar tissue that forms inside the joint due to lack of movement. If a joint is not moved through its full range of motion every day, scar tissue will form inside the joint. Frozen shoulder is quite common among stroke victims who are paralyzed on one side because they are unable to move their shoulders through a full range of motion.

Weakness in the tendon of the rotator cuff leads to frozen shoulder. Also, the capsule surrounding the shoulder joint can thicken and contract, allowing the upper arm bone less space to move. Trauma or surgery to the joint that results in long periods of immobilization can lead to frozen shoulder. Although only one shoulder is normally affected, in roughly one-third of the cases, motion may be limited in both arms.

What are the symptoms of frozen shoulder?
Frozen shoulder appears to occur in three main phases:

• In the first stage, shoulder pain increases with movement and gets worse at night. As the pain increases, so does loss of motion. This phase usually lasts 2 to 9 months.
• During the second stage, the arm may be easier to move, but range of motion is limited – close to 50 percent less than the other arm. This phase may last 4 to 12 months.
• The third stage involves a resolution of the condition. Over a 12 to 24-month period, the sufferer will experience gradual improvement in the mobility of the shoulder. However, treatment is usually necessary to achieve proper motion.

Conventional medical treatments may help relieve the symptoms of frozen shoulder but they do not address the root of the problem. By strengthening structural weaknesses in the body, as natural medicine therapies like Prolotherapy do, frozen shoulder pain can be alleviated permanently.

Click here to read Prolotherapy research by Dr. Ross Hauser and his team on Prolotherapy injections for shoulder pain and degeneration.