Shoulder Injections

The human shoulder muscles are responsible for the widest range of motion in your body. Your shoulders are composed of muscles, tendons and ligaments that provide flexibility for this movement. The two joints that compose your shoulder are the glenohumeral joint and the acromioclavicular joint. Essentially where your upper arm bones connect with your shoulder blade and where your shoulder blade meets your collarbone.

This joint structure keeps your arm in place of the shoulder socket. This wide range of flexibility and range of movement are what make your shoulder susceptible for injury. Within this joint there is synovial fluid that allows the joint to move fluidly and comfortably.

Shoulder pain is a common complaint for many Americans. Whether from normal wear and tear or injury, injection therapy is an effective way to treat shoulder pain. Before beginning any type of therapy to treat your pain, it is important to recognize the symptoms of shoulder pain.

Some common indicators are: 

• Reduced flexibility in movement 
• Pain associated with shoulder movement 
• Weakness in the shoulder/upper arms 
• Pain deep in your shoulder joint 
• Pain in the back or front of your shoulder 
• Pain in the upper part of your arm 
• Tingling in the shoulder joints 

Depending on the source of your shoulder pain, the symptoms may vary. But they should never be ignored. Ignoring your shoulder pain symptoms may potentially cause irreversible damage. You should manage your symptoms with the care of a medical professional, skilled in treating shoulder pain.  

What Are Shoulder Injections

Shoulder injections are a common and successful therapeutic approach to treating shoulder pain. Shoulder injections are typically a solution composed of corticosteroids and a local anesthetic that help reduce inflammation and swelling.

Depending on the source of your pain, the location of your injection may vary, as well as the type of shoulder injection you receive. The different types of shoulder injections are: 

Long Head Of Biceps (LHB) Injection:

This injection is used to treat shoulder pain associated with biceps tendonitis. The physician utilizes ultrasound guidance to administer the injection. Medication is administered to the sheath around the tendon and not the tendon itself.

Glenohumeral Joint Injection:

This injection is used to treat shoulder arthritis pain and a ‘frozen shoulder’ affecting your range of movement. The medication is administered directly to the joint.  

Subacromial Space Injection: 

This injection is used to treat shoulder pain associated with bursitis, rotator cuff damage, or any type of subacromial impingement.  

Acromioclavicular Joint Injection: 

This shoulder injection is used to treat shoulder pain associated with osteoarthritis of the joint.  

A trained medical professional will be able to determine the most appropriate injection for shoulder pain.  

How Do Shoulder Injections Work

Injections for shoulder pain are a minimally invasive way to treat your symptoms. Patients may experience immediate relief from their symptoms due to the anesthetic present in the solution. And they may experience long term relief from the steroid present in the medication. 

Your healthcare professional will utilize progressive, X-Ray guided fluoroscopy to determine the most effective placement of the injection. The solution is administered to the joint space, directly treating the affected area.  

The procedure is performed in a sterile environment. You will be positioned according to the location of your pain. The injection site will be cleansed using betadine or alcohol. Your physician will anesthetize your skin using local anesthetic. A small needle with medication will deliver the anesthetic to the site of pain. You may experience pressure at the site. The process may take up to 15 minutes to administer. You may begin to notice immediate relief, but it may take a day or two for the medication to take full effect.  

The nerves, muscles, and tissue surround the affected area of the shoulder are bathed in the solution from the injection, reducing inflammation and pain. This allows patients to experience better mobility and help them return to a fully functioning life. Some patients may even benefit from the short term relief because it allows them to participate in physical therapy (another treatment method for shoulder pain) for long term relief.  

What Conditions Do Shoulder Injections Treat

After an evaluation from a trained medical professional or a pain specialist, you will be able to determine the source of your shoulder pain. Shoulder injections are used to treat several different health conditions that commonly affect people every day. Shoulder injections are used to treat the following health conditions: 

• Osteoarthritis: When the healthy, smooth cartilage becomes worn down due to injury or normal wear and tear.  
• Inflammation of the shoulder capsule: When the synovial fluid membrane becomes inflamed, causing pain.  
• Frozen shoulder: When the shoulder capsule thickens and becomes tight, limiting movement. 
• Rotator cuff disease: The presence of degenerative tendinosis, or partial tears in the cuff 
• Inflamed bursa: When the fluid-filled sac (the bursa) becomes inflamed from repetitive motions 

Immediately after shoulder injection, a patient may also experience a temporary increase in pain before the anesthetic is experienced. You will need to take precautions to not overexert yourself and injure the injection site. You will also be asked not to sit in any pools or tubs for 48 hours after the injection to prevent infection. The steroid medication may take 2-3 days to start having a full effect. Patients can use an ice pack applied to the area to alleviate any discomfort.  

Pain and Spine Specialists offers progressive treatments like X-Ray guided fluoroscopy injections for Shoulder Pain, as well as other therapeutic approaches. Our experienced and skilled medical professionals can help establish effective injection treatments to help reduce your pain symptoms to improve the quality of your life. You can call (301) 703-8767 (Maryland), (724) 603-3560 (Pennsylvania), or (540) 433-1905 (Virginia) and schedule an appointment today.