The rotator cuff is a group of four muscles (supraspinatus, infraspinatus, teres minor and subscapularis) that help to stabilize the shoulder joint during movement. These muscles, and associated tendons can become dysfunctional secondary to trauma, overuse, impaired postures, or a combination. This can lead to tears in the tendon(s) that do not respond to conservative treatments. When surgery is needed, the surgeon will fix the tears, as well as other anatomical issue they may discover. A rotator cuff tear can come in many forms and sizes, including involvement of the biceps tendon, which means the rehabilitation for each shoulder is not the same.
There is often a period following surgery where we have to allow the tendon to heal while wearing a sling and eliminating use. Once your surgeon releases you to physical therapy we will assess the shoulder, as educate you on the surgery and the rehab process. The early phases of rehab often are limited to range of motion, scar management, soft tissue work, postural corrections and pain control as we continue to allow the tendon to heal. When we have reached the appropriate time, we are able to start activating the musculature surrounding the shoulder and shoulder blade. As this progresses, we are able to transition into strengthening of the shoulder while continuing to improve range of motion. The latter part of the rehab process focuses on continued strengthening, alone with higher level movement patterns. Throughout the whole process we are communicating with both our patients and their surgeons to keep them updated on the progress made, and goals we still want to reach.
