Have you ever thought about everything your shoulder can do? You can lift your arms overhead, reach behind your back, and roll your shoulders. The shoulder is also tremendously important across different sports–baseball players use it to throw lightning-fast pitches, and swimmers use it to propel themselves through the water. There’s no denying the role that shoulder anatomy plays in athletics.
But all those complex movements can also lead to shoulder injuries. The truth is that your shoulder joint is incredibly complex, and you can damage this powerhouse of mobility in many ways.
Understanding shoulder anatomy–and the ways it can go wrong–is the first step in protecting yourself from sports injuries. Keep reading to learn about the structures that make up your shoulder and what puts them at risk of injury. Then consider an appointment with Sievers Sports Medicine for a shoulder-related checkup!
An Overview of Shoulder Anatomy
Your shoulder is a complex ball-and-socket joint, allowing it its wide range of motion. It contains three bones that form two distinct joints, four ligaments to connect those joints, a group of muscles and tendons known as the rotator cuff to support and stabilize those joints, and cartilage, bursae, and a synovial membrane to provide additional protection.
In short–there are many ways someone can injure their shoulder. Let’s take a deeper look.
- Bones: The three bones in your shoulder are your collarbone, shoulder blade, and upper arm bone. It’s possible to fracture any of these bones, and indeed, shoulder fractures can occur in high-contact sports. Shoulder dislocations, in which the ball part of the joint separates from the socket, are also common.
- Ligaments: The shoulder’s four ligaments connect those three bones and provide stability to the joint. If one of those ligaments overstretches or tears (either partially or completely), it will require treatment and rehabilitation.
- Rotator Cuff: The rotator cuff is probably the most common source of shoulder injuries, especially for athletes. Many rotator cuff injuries are overuse injuries, meaning they develop gradually due to improper form or repetitive motions. As with your ligaments, the muscles and tendons in the rotator cuff can overstretch or tear.
- Bursae: The bursae are small, fluid-filled sacs that protect your shoulder’s tendons. Repetitive motion can lead to bursitis, in which the bursae become inflamed.
- Cartilage: As with all your joints, your shoulder contains cartilage and synovial fluid to cushion and protect the bones. One of the more common injuries to your shoulder’s cartilage is a labral tear, a tear in the cartilage in the shoulder socket.
Treating and Preventing Shoulder Injuries at Sievers Sports Medicine
At Sievers Sports Medicine, our sports medicine specialists have extensive experience treating sports-related shoulder injuries. Plus, our in-house X-ray and musculoskeletal ultrasound help us confirm your exact diagnosis to provide accurate, effective care.
Once we’ve determined the nature of your injury, we’ll create a customized treatment plan that addresses your specific needs–whether that’s a brace to immobilize the shoulder joint, ultrasound-guided injections to manage pain and facilitate healing, or other sports medicine strategies.
But we don’t just want to treat shoulder injuries. Our keen understanding of shoulder anatomy can help you prevent them as well. If you or your child is a student-athlete, we can perform their mandatory yearly physical, helping to identify shoulder weaknesses before they become a problem.
Not a student-athlete? No problem! We work closely with adults of all activity levels to create training and wellness programs that suit their needs.
Don’t let a surprise shoulder injury put you on the sidelines. Request an appointment at our sports medicine clinic today!