Calcific Tendonitis

"Frozen shoulder" which is the layman term for calcific tendonitis, occurs very frequently. However, it happens most often to women who are diabetic and above 40 years old. Of course the condition may be caused by some kind of accident, but doctors are unsure of the exact cause of calcific tendonitis.

Of course when caused by trauma it happens quickly, but in most cases it took close to a year to reach a case of calcific tendonitis severe enough for the patient to ask for any kind of medical help. This is because in the beginning, the pain is relatively mild, and the range of motion of the shoulder is not hampered at all.

Little by little, the pain increases, usually causing an interruption of sleep as the pain is usually worst at night. Along with the pain increasing, there is also the beginning of loss of the range of motion to the affected shoulder. For example putting away dishes into your cupboard will cause you to wince in pain. Or, someone who plays tennis, for example, may no longer be able to raise their tennis racket.

Shots of cortisone have often been extremely helpful, but there is a problem with those. The doctor administering the shot needs to place it in a very precise location. Finding the right location is difficult, even among trained doctors who have performed that procedure for years. With the use of such things as x-rays and diagnostic ultrasonography, most doctors can place the shot in the exact position as needed.

Following this treatment, much of the pain associated with calcific tendonitis may disappear or at least lessen. It is then that an extreme amount of physical therapy must ensue.

Generally, you may be able to accomplish the exercises in your home, but most people end up having to see a physical therapist in order to receive a proper supervised rehabilitation program. Most of the exercises are relatively simple. For example, standing and facing a wall, you use the fingers of your affected shoulder to simply walk up the wall. At first, you'll only be able to perform a few "steps" of this exercise, but after receiving therapy for a few months, you'll notice that you go higher and higher up that wall. Pilates have been known to be helpful in some cases.

As mentioned the complete immobilization of your shoulder probably took months to create, and your therapy will also take months on months to receive complete relief. You will however, be able to mark your progress, albeit slowly. A number of other treatments are often tried, such as ice, heat, and you may also receive nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) as well.

If your calcific tendonitis resists all the therapies prescribed, and you've done them religiously for months on end, the final solution may well be surgery. You should, however, prior to having surgery, look toward all the other venues, such as more intense physical therapy first, and besides following surgery, you will still need to follow a very intensive physical therapy program! You can learn more about tendon strain here.