Massage for Shoulder Injuries

Understanding the vast range of shoulder injuries is vital when determining whether massage therapy may be part of your solution. First, it is important to know that Licensed Massage Practitioners (massage therapists) should not provide your diagnosis. It is outside of our scope of practice, and therefore our first responsibility is to see that you are directed to your physician for this part of the process.

However, it is not unusual for me to have someone walk in the door for a regularly scheduled massage session complaining of shoulder pain. As such my primary responsibility is to see that I do no harm, so I will often conduct an assessment to determine what I can do to help even before you see your doctor. On a few occasions I have determined that massage was not appropriate and asked that the client make an appointment with their doctor as soon as practical.

Once it is determined that massage may be of benefit, it is vital for your therapist to understand the complex movers of the shoulder as well as the passive structures involved. In joints less complex than the shoulder, stabilization is more commonly done by passive structures such as ligaments. But because of the range of motion in the shoulder joint, a large number of muscles both move and stabilize the joint.

Rotator Cuff

Good examples of stabilizers in the shoulder are the four rotator cuff muscles and their tendons. These muscles are important to strengthen if you are to keep your shoulder in good health, but they can also be a major source of aggravation with such activities as racket sports and weight lifting. The rotator cuff muscles tend to be aggravated by overuse and develop chronic inflammation, often at or near the tendons. Also, because the rotator cuff muscles have such specific movements, most people don't effectively address these muscles when they train, so the muscles end up weak and ineffective.

Biceps Tendon

Another muscle and tendon that can be assisted with recovery is the long head of the biceps muscle. The tendon of this head of the biceps muscle is unusual as it runs through the joint capsule. Because of this it can be difficult to treat effectively but massage can still help. The good news is that problems with this muscle tend to be less frequent.

Upper Back Pain

One of the most common complaints I hear about is chronic pain in the upper back just medial to the scapula (shoulder blade). Often this pain stems from the rhomboid muscles or traps being in spasm. Strangely enough one of the more effective ways to treat this problem is by also massaging the pectoralis minor and latisimus dorsi on the front of the torso. The idea here is to increase shoulder retraction for better posture. You can help yourself with frequent stretching of the area.

These are just a small sample of the more common soft tissue problems I see in and around the shoulder region. For more information feel free to give me a call and we can start getting you back on track to pain free activity.

For more information or to schedule an appointment, call me at (425) 861-7334.