Sounds from the Shoulder Needs to Be Treated if The Patient Feels Pain
By Winston Lee L.Ac, Ph.D., KMD
When I see patients in the clinic, I have heard many people say that their shoulders keep making noises when lifting heavy things at the gym or at home. Like a pitcher, Ryu Hyun-Jin, a major league baseball player, many patients are worried about whether they should have surgery or not.
To begin with, I can say that everyone can hear a noise from their shoulders and, strictly speaking, even from my shoulders. Among the numerous joints in our body, the shoulder has a greater range of movement than other joints like knees or elbows. And the shoulder joints are joints that move freely back and forth. The range of motion is at the maximum limit when they make a golf swing, baseball batting swing, or lift heavy weights at the gym.
The surface of shoulder joints is so narrow that they are able to make a wider range of motions that they are so easy to pop out. Therefore they are supposed to be tightly attached to the muscles from the skull, C-spine, scapular, upper arm, lumbar spine, and even ribs. In other words, shoulder joints are naturally more unstable than other joints. This innate issue, which is somewhat unnatural compared to other joints, is a major reason for the noise coming from the shoulders.
Meanwhile, the noise from the shoulders does not necessarily come from the joints. Many occur in the gap space between the scapulars and ribs, not in the joints. The scapular bone does not have a firm face as a joint with a certain bone like a spine with a tight ligament, but rather has a complex structure of muscles to the neck, back, waist, and ribs. There is also a space between the muscles and between the muscles and the ribs, through which nerves, blood vessels, and lymphatic vessels pass, which can be heard as the tissues collide. Compared to this, the knee or elbow joint has cartilage that can reduce friction at all times in the area where the bone and the bone meet, and because it holds each other tightly with strong ligaments, it is gentle movement and unusual to make a noise.
Doctors don’t need to pay more attention to such noise, but you should consider starting treatment if the patient suffers from limited motion or has pain while they move within the normal range of movement.
First, acupuncture and physical therapy should relieve the tightness of the shoulders’ upper, front, and inner muscles. Also, if the spine curve is abnormal, the pain can be further aggravated as motion forces the neck, waist, and shoulder joints. Therefore, in this case, it is faster to use a combination of chiropractic to treat spinal disorders such as scoliosis or straightened spine in the neck and back.
If the patient has no problem with pain or a limited range of exercise, but the patient’s shoulders keep making noises, and it bothers them, they should take it seriously and pay attention to their exercise or posture. If they do any workout like golfing, tennis, or baseball too often, they may experience this symptom due to excessive swings with the shoulders. If they do bodybuilding, they should also be careful to increase weights as they lift with shoulder muscles. Small but low pillows can also cause abnormal friction in the joints of the shoulder, especially if body weight is centralized on either shoulder during the night while sleeping on the side. Therefore, if anybody hears a noise from their shoulders, check the patient’s exercise or lifestyle mentioned above first, and if they have any pain or exercise restrictions along with the noise, doctors must suggest professional treatment.
