Shoulder Dislocation
About 2.1 million people a year have shoulder problems in Korea, and dislocation is among them.
The shoulder has the widest range of motion of any joint, so it constantly contracts and tenses and is hard to keep stable. When it happens to young people from injury, it often recurs.
Repeated dislocations can cause further damage such as capsule injury, labral tears and rotator cuff tears, so treating the underlying cause is essential.
Common causes
01
Impact while rotating the arm
02
Trauma
03
Excessive sports activity
04
Landing on the hand in a fall
Signs to watch for
- You have dislocated it before, and it now happens often
- It dislocates with small impacts and feels unstable, as if it will slip out
- The first dislocation is very painful, but repeated ones may hurt less
How we diagnose
Ultrasound
Examines the joint while it moves, so problems that appear only in certain positions can be found. Inflamed areas can be treated with guided injections at the same time.
MRI
Shows soft tissue that X-ray cannot, such as muscles, ligaments, discs, cartilage, nerves and blood vessels.
How we treat it
Treatment depends on damage to the capsule and ligaments. If damage is limited, we use medication, injections and physical therapy.
Non-surgical injection therapy
Prolotherapy injects directly into weakened ligaments or tendons to reinforce the fibrous tissue, or a hyaluronic acid injection, a main component of joint fluid, is placed into weakened cartilage.
Extracorporeal shockwave therapy
Used across orthopedics, physical therapy and sports medicine, shockwave therapy aids recovery without surgery or painkillers and suits many conditions that cause acute or chronic pain.
Manual & exercise therapy
A specialist physical therapist uses hands-on techniques based on anatomy, such as relaxation methods and joint mobilization, to reduce pain and improve function.
When surgery is consideredIf non-surgical treatment does not help, or a traumatic dislocation caused severe damage, the surgical approach is chosen according to the type of damage.