Is Surgery Effective at Treating a Rotator Cuff Impingement?
The Physical Therapy approach to rotator cuff problems generally involves strengthening exercises, hot and cold packs and ultrasound. Hot and cold packs offer temporary relief, but can easily be performed at home more conveniently and less expensively. Ultrasound is effective at providing drug-free inflammation reduction, but offers little curative, long-term value. Strengthening exercises are also helpful at providing improved stability to the supportive muscles of the shoulder. However, one must ask, “What is causing the weakness?” In most cases the weakness is the result of a trauma to the muscle or the accumulation of injury over an extended period of time (often months to years). The body repairs this damage by infusing scar tissue into the muscles, tendons and ligaments. This scar tissue prevents muscle from fully lengthening (making it tight) and interferes with its ability to shorten (making it appear weak). The ability of the muscle fibers to contract strongly has not changed.
