Dislocated Shoulder Treatment

The shoulder joint is the most movable joint of our body. Due to so much of movements of our arms in various directions, this joint is prone to maximum injury. When the connection between the top edge of our arm bone and the socket of the shoulder blade loses connection, then it leads to a dislocated shoulder. Shoulder dislocation occurs when a person has sustained some form of injury in the shoulder. The possible injury can be caused due to some trauma like a bad fall or over excessive movement of the joint due to overuse. The main aim of the dislocated shoulder treatment is to provide relief from the symptoms as early as possible.

Symptoms

When there is a dislocation in the shoulder, the patient suffer from an extreme shoulder pain. Sometimes, the pain gets extended to the arms as well. A sudden, sharp pain is experienced every time the patient tries to move the arm like a rotational movements. Many patients get the feeling that their shoulder is popping out. When there is a badly dislocated shoulder, then the dislocated condition becomes visible and the shoulder look quite different. Instead of the rounded appearance the shoulder look square. In case any blood vessel or nerve of the shoulder area get damaged as a result of the dislocation, then numbness and tingling sensation is felt in the arms and hand.

Treatment

There are two aspects of a shoulder joint treatment. One is the relocation of the joint and the other one is the control of the pain. For the relocation of the shoulder joint to its original position doctors use certain techniques which are collectively referred to as closed reduction. In one such dislocated shoulder rehab technique, the doctor bend the hand of the injured side at the elbow to make it 90 degrees and then the shoulder is rotated in the outward direction for a few minutes which in turn helps to reduce the muscle spasm of the injury site and the shoulder may get relocated instantly. In order to bring down the pain provide comfort to the patient, medications like pain killers, anti-inflammatory drugs and muscle relaxants are administered. In those cases in which the damage caused by dislocated shoulder is severe, the patient has to undergo a surgery for the purpose of restoration of the shoulder. This surgical procedure is known as open reduction.

After the reduction of the dislocated shoulder, patients are advised to use a sling so that they do not start using the joint by mistake. The duration of wearing a sling depends on the extent of injury and its condition after the treatment. The next step of dislocated shoulder treatment is to resume strength to the rotator cuff muscles and regain the normal functioning of the shoulder joint. This is done with the help of therapy. It begins with physical therapy treatment. As the pain starts going down with physical therapy, one should begin dislocated shoulder rehabilitation exercises under the supervision of the physical therapist. The best dislocated shoulder exercises are those which are done using gravity. Like slowly moving the arm backside behind you and stretch it further. Another such exercise is to lift the injured shoulder first up to the face and then slowly above the head.

Generally, the healing time varies from twelve to sixteen weeks. In almost fifty percent of the cases, the problem of dislocated shoulder recurs all over again. Those who tend to get dislocated shoulder again and again often ignore the problem and delay the treatment. However, one should start the treatment as soon as one has sustained the injury or any symptoms are observed that suggest that dislocation may have occurred, in order to prevent any kind of irreparable damage.