When you wake up and stretch, are your shoulders in pain? Do you feel like you can stretch your arms above your head a little less each day? Does doing simple things like getting something from a shelf cause excruciating pain? Do you notice that your shoulders feel stiff most of the time? Does the shoulder pain get aggravated when you do any work or activity? If you have answered yes to the above questions, then you might have shoulder arthritis. 

“Shoulder arthritis occurs when there is damage to the cartilage present in the shoulder joints,” says Dr. Banarji B.H, Orthopaedic surgeon at the Dr. Banarji Shoulder Center in Bengaluru, India. With 2 decades of experience treating various shoulder-related ailments, Dr. Banarji B. H is one of the leading authorities on shoulder arthritis. 

Shoulder arthritis is of 2 types: Degenerative arthritis or osteoarthritis and rotator cuff tear arthropathy or arthritis secondary to rotator cuff tear. Osteoarthritis occurs due to wear and tear of the cartilage present between two bones of the shoulders. It mostly occurs in people above the age of 50. It can also occur in younger people due to trauma, injuries, infections, and rheumatoid. Rotator cuff tear arthropathy, as the name suggests, occurs when the rotator cuff, that holds the humerus in the glenoid socket, is torn. “People involved in weightlifting and overhead sports like baseball, and tennis are generally more prone to developing shoulder arthritis,” says Dr. Banarji B. H.

In the initial stage of osteoarthritis, conventional treatment methods are followed. This includes physical therapy and exercises to improve shoulder movements, medications, and injections to reduce pain and inflammation. However, when the cartilage degeneration is severe total shoulder replacement i.e., arthroplasty becomes necessary. For treating rotator cuff tear arthropathy reverse shoulder arthroplasty is recommended. It is a special type of surgery where the ball and socket mechanism is reversed so that the remaining muscles like deltoid muscles will function and help to carry out the functions of shoulder muscles.

“After a total shoulder arthroplasty people should not carry heavy weights or do any excessive stretching or shoulder motions as it may damage the artificial joints,” warns Dr. Banarji B. H. therefore, a recovery time of 6 weeks to 3 months is recommended after an arthroplasty. “However, reverting to your pre-surgery lifestyle is also completely possible,” says Dr. Banarji B. H. To illustrate this, he talks about Alex (name changed), an exercise enthusiast and avid weight trainer from America. Alex suffered from shoulder arthritis and had to undergo a total shoulder arthroplasty. It seemed like Alex will never be able to lift weights again. However, he did not give up. After a few months of rest, Alex slowly started training again. With help from his doctors and trainers, Alex was back doing his regular exercises with even more passion in a matter of a few months.

According to Dr. Banarji B. H, if you have any symptoms of shoulder arthritis it is best to pay a visit to your orthopaedist at the earliest. 

CONTACT US 

Dr. Banarji shoulder center

3/4, 8th Main (Water Tank Road), CHBS Layout, Vijayanagar, Bangalore - 560 040.
Emergency: 9731274396

Appointment Mob:7760659606

Email:drbanarji@orthobangalore.com