Shoulder Pain: Don't Shrug It Off

Shoulder conditions and injuries can cause pain so severe you struggle with everyday activities. Sometimes, physical therapy is the solution, but other times orthopedic surgery is needed.

C. Craig Satterlee, MD, orthopedic surgeon with Orthopedic Health of Kansas City, shared surgery’s progression to modern treatments; indications, options and benefits; and what to look for in an orthopedic surgeon.

Top 5 Takeaways

1. Over time, the causes of shoulder pain have remained the same. However, the treatments – nonoperative and operative – have evolved.
2. The shoulder’s anatomy is made of up several components – bones, cartilage, ligaments, muscles and nerves.
3. Diagnosis involves the patient’s medical history and a physical, which are accompanied by diagnostic tests. Those could include:

• • X-rays
  • MRI
  • CT imaging
  • Electromyography (measures muscle response or electrical activity to nerve stimulation)
  • Nerve conduction velocity test
  • Arthroscopy

4. When conservative treatment fails, arthroscopic or open surgery may be an option for a variety of conditions, including

• • Frozen shoulder
  • Labral tear
  • Rotator cuff tear
  • Calcific tendonitis
  • Fracture
  • Arthritis

5. Over the last few decades, specialization has increased so that orthopedic surgeons can subspecialize though education, training and certification programs for the diagnosis and treatment of shoulder injuries, but also other upper extremity conditions below the shoulder.

Watch Dr. Satterlee’s presentation.

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Amy Bennett

Amy Bennett is the physician communications coordinator for North Kansas City Hospital. She is editor of Physician Connections, and she writes brochure, web and other communication pieces for North Kansas City Hospital and Meritas Health. In her spare time, she is often working in her flower garden or volunteering with the Girl Scouts or Pet Partners, a pet therapy organization.