Pain Doctor Discusses the Best Shoulder Pain Treatment in 2020
Shoulder pain can occur for several reasons, including fractures, instability, shoulder arthritis, shoulder injury, and many others. Shoulder pain can often lead to an abrupt tearing sensation, loss of muscle power, muscle spasms, weakness of shoulders, lack of mobility, or pain that worsens at night.
The potential causes of shoulder pain are multifold. They can range from a simple shoulder injury to issues like osteoarthritis, shoulder bursitis, rotator cuff injuries, tendonitis, and many more. If you have sustained shoulder pain, you must consult a shoulder pain doctor so they can diagnose the root cause of shoulder pain and treat it accordingly.
Most shoulder joint pain treatments consist of home treatments (rest, ice packs, physical therapy, etc), followed by minimally invasive medical treatments like steroid injections and viscosupplementation. Interventional pain specialists offer the best shoulder pain treatments.
You must avoid pain doctors who recommend surgeries or opioids. Surgeries are unnecessary and risky. Opioids don’t treat the root cause of shoulder pain and lead to gradual dependence on opioids, which can lead to addiction.
In this article, we discuss the best shoulder pain treatment in 2020 according to medical advice from a pain doctor.
Home Remedies for Shoulder Joint Pain
Whether you’re suffering from muscle pain, shoulder joint pain, or shoulder injury, all shoulder pain treatments start with home remedies. In some cases, home remedies and conservative treatments are enough. But if the shoulder pain persists, you’ll have to proceed with minimally invasive shoulder pain treatments. Your pain doctor will recommend some of the following home remedies for shoulder joint pain.
RICE
RICE is a basic home remedy for all joint pains. It consists of the following:
- Rest: Don’t aggravate your shoulders and rest them for a few days.
- Ice: Apply an ice pack over the injured shoulder for approximately 20 minutes a few times a day.
- Compression: Wrap an ACE bandage around the shoulder joint.
- Elevation: Keep your injured shoulder joint elevated.
Physical Therapy
Your pain doctor will recommend some physical therapists or physical therapy exercises to help you regain mobility in your shoulders. You must perform the exercises every day according to their medical advice to restore mobility.
Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs
Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs like Ibuprofen and Naproxen reduce inflammation and muscle pain. While they don’t offer lasting relief, you can take them in measured doses for temporary relief.
Minimally Invasive Shoulder Injury Treatments
The best way to treat shoulder pain is through minimally-invasive shoulder injury treatments. When you consult an interventional pain specialist, they will run some diagnostic tests like physical examinations, imaging tests, and screening tests. Based on the diagnosis, your doctor will recommend the best minimally invasive treatment for your needs. The following is an overview of some of the best minimally invasive procedures to treat shoulder pain.
Steroid Injections
Steroid Injections, also known as Corticosteroids, are the first line of treatment for shoulder joint pains. During this procedure, the pain doctor will inject a steroid-based injection into the shoulder bursa above your tendons. These injections reduce inflammation to reduce muscle pain and bursal irritation. You will need multiple injections for optimal results. This is a form of anti-inflammatory medication, but it’s far more powerful than traditional anti-inflammatory drugs like Aspirin. Furthermore, corticosteroids are minimally-invasive and non-surgical procedures conducted in a doctor’s office, and the procedure concludes within a few short minutes.
Viscosupplementation
Viscosupplementation, also known as Hyaluronic Acid Injection, is a process used to supplement the naturally-occurring shoulder joint fluid to restore mobility and reduce friction caused by movement. The shoulder joint fluid (synovial fluid) is made of a component called hyaluronic acid that gives the joint fluid its viscous quality and facilitates the smooth movement of your cartilages. However, people suffering from shoulder osteoarthritis don’t produce enough hyaluronic acid, which leads to friction when your shoulder joints glide against each other. During the viscosupplementation procedure, the pain doctor injects the acid into the shoulder joints to supplement the hyaluronic acid, facilitating smooth movement of joints. This procedure is ideal for shoulder osteoarthritis treatment, leads to no recovery downtime, and carries a negligible risk of side effects.
Platelet-Rich Plasma Injection
Platelet-Rich Plasma Injection is a procedure generally used in surgeries to facilitate cell regeneration, and it can be used to treat shoulder osteoarthritis and shoulder tendonitis. The platelet-rich plasma comes from the patient’s body, so the risk of infections is negligible. However, this method is relatively new, it isn’t covered by insurance, and the cost of each injection is around $1500, making it extremely costly. As such, we don’t highly recommend this treatment.
Schedule your Shoulder Joint Treatment Today
Are you suffering from a shoulder injury or shoulder joint pain? Is the shoulder pain persistent? If so, we highly recommend scheduling an appointment with Pain Treatment Specialists, which is one of the best pain management medical centers in the country. We have some of the best physical therapists and pain specialists who examine the root cause of your shoulder pain and treat it using the latest minimally invasive procedures. We don’t recommend surgeries and we don’t provide opioids — instead, we target the root cause of your shoulder pain to offer lasting relief. For more information, please schedule your shoulder joint treatment today.