WHAT CAUSES ROTATOR CUFF TENDINITIS?
Rotator cuff tendinitis does not occur all at once. Usually it happens over a long time with repeated irritation to an area. It happens more often in people with loose joints, people with abnormal bony anatomy in the shoulder, and people who do heavy or repetitive lifting above shoulder level. Lifting overhead or just moving the arm above the head may cause pinching of one of the tendons of the rotator cuff between the upper part of the arm bone and the acromion (which is part of the shoulder blade). [Figure 2] This pinching is called “impingement.” Other causes include calcium in the tendons or a sudden injury to the shoulder.
