What is Frozen Shoulder?

Everything you need to know about Adhesive Capsulitis — symptoms, causes, diagnosis and the most effective treatment available.

Understanding Frozen Shoulder

Frozen Shoulder, known in the medical community as adhesive capsulitis, is a condition that causes severe, painful restriction of motion in the shoulder joint. The pain, swelling and stiffness make everyday activities more difficult, gradually worsens over time, and even affects your ability to have a restful night’s sleep.

Frozen shoulder causes the capsule surrounding the shoulder joint to contract and form scar tissue that prevents the shoulder bone from being able to move freely in the socket. The shoulder literally seems to be “frozen” in place, which is why it is called frozen shoulder.

The condition is twice as likely to develop in women than in men, typically affects those between the ages of 40 and 60, but can also develop after a shoulder injury, shoulder surgery, or even after vaccinations in the shoulder muscle. When injury or surgery is followed by prolonged joint immobilization such as putting the shoulder in a sling, the risk of developing frozen shoulder is highest.

Without proper treatment for frozen shoulder, this painful condition can last for years. Learn More

What are the Symptoms of Frozen Shoulder?

Common Symptoms

Shoulder pain — usually a dull, aching pain

Pain when trying to sleep on the affected shoulder

Limited movement, with severe pain beyond a certain range

Difficulty with brushing teeth, washing hair, getting dressed

Advanced-Stage Symptoms

Neck pain

Upper shoulder pain

Elbow / forearm pain

Neck stiffness

Headaches

Numbness in the hands

What are the Symptoms of Frozen Shoulder?

1

Stage 1 — Freezing

2–9 months

Most frozen shoulder sufferers first become aware of the condition by experiencing a dull, aching pain in their shoulder. The shoulder becomes painful and stiffness slowly builds up, limiting a person’s overall movement.

2

Stage 2 — Frozen

4–12+ months

During the second stage, the pain actually begins to subside in the upper arm and shoulder, but the stiffness and limitation to range of motion in the joint capsule will increase. Patients may have a sharp, acute (nerve) pain when making sudden or forceful movements beyond their normal limitations.

3

Stage 3 — Thawing

2–3 years (90% of cases)

The shoulder eventually begins to thaw, and the range of motion will go back to normal. However, in 10% of cases frozen shoulder will not disappear without medical intervention. More than half of those who go without treatment will experience permanent damage.

What is the Shoulder Capsule, and How is it Affected?

The shoulder is made up of three bones that form a ball-and-socket joint. Along with the tissues that hold everything together, the three bones form the shoulder capsule:

Humerus (upper arm)

Scapula (shoulder blade)

Clavicle (collarbone)

When a patient develops frozen shoulder, the capsule surrounding the joint contracts. The patient’s body forms bands of scar tissue called adhesions. In addition, the soft sacs which cushion the joint called bursae may also stick together causing loss of ability to move the shoulder.

The contraction of the capsule and the formation of the adhesions cause the frozen shoulder to become stiff and cause movement to become extremely painful.

What Causes Frozen Shoulder?

To date, there is no universally recognized cause of frozen shoulder in the medical community. However, based on the last 40 years of clinical observations, the team at the World Frozen Shoulder Clinic has identified three common denominators — a “perfect storm” of symptoms:

1

Nerve Compression

Frozen Shoulder almost always occurs in patients with lower neck disc conditions or muscle contraction conditions that compress the nerves supplying the shoulder and arm with motor and sensory information. Over time, this weakens the muscles in and around the shoulder joint.

2

Hormonal Imbalance

Frozen shoulder always occurs in those with hormonal imbalances such as menopause, diabetes, thyroid, adrenal stress, testosterone imbalance, etc. When the endocrine system is out of balance, the body’s immune system and healing response is also out of balance.

3

Shoulder Strain Injury

When a person strains or injures a muscle or tendon, the body responds with protective inflammation. Combined with a hormonal imbalance, the inflammatory response produces excessive amounts of scar tissue in and around the shoulder joint.

Other Predisposing Factors

Besides age, gender, hormonal disorders, and shoulder trauma or surgery, other systemic conditions have been associated with increased risk for developing frozen shoulder, such as heart disease and Parkinson’s disease. It is also hypothesized that some patients develop frozen shoulder due to severe stress causing a psychosomatic reaction.

Can I Perform a Self-Diagnosis?

If you’re experiencing shoulder pain and have noticed a reduction in your range of motion that affects your daily life — and even the quality of your sleep — you may be worried that you have frozen shoulder.

With our help, you can perform a self-diagnosis by doing a few simple actions to evaluate your range of motion from the comfort of your own home.

The frozen shoulder self-diagnosis test will pose a few simple questions, have you replicate certain actions to test various active and passive ranges of motion, and through a process of elimination will rule out other potential causes such as a rotator cuff tear.

Free Consultation

Not sure if you have frozen shoulder? Book a free consultation and our specialists will help you determine the best course of action.

N. America Toll Free : +1 855 5 frozen

Toronto: +1 647-9-Frozen

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