Adhesive Capsulitis -

Adhesive capsulitis, also known as frozen shoulder, is a condition that can be very debilitating.

With frozen shoulder, the ligaments and tendons that make up the capsule of the shoulder joint, begin to tighten and adhere in the joint. This process is painful and leads to decreased motion of the shoulder.

It is also an injury that can occur without an actual injury.

Who gets Adhesive Capsulitis?

To tell you the truth medical specialists really cannot say who gets this condition. There are those who are predisposed including those with diabetes or those with trauma to the shoulder that limits how much you can move the arm.

However, this can also happen without an injury or other medical condition.

Stages of Adhesive Capsulitis:

Freezing. The first and most painful stage in the process. This is when the shoulder starts to be painful and loose the Range of Motion and strength.
Frozen. This stage is when the pain usual goes away but the loss of range of motion (ROM) and strength remains.
Thawing. The last stage when the ROM and strength begin to return.

Get more info here.

We were taught in school that each stage takes 4-6 months, but the actual time varies. Sometimes even up to 2-3 years for the entire process to complete.

Treatment

Physical Therapy can help decrease the pain and improve the ROM of the shoulder, but there is a limited window of when PT can help.

If you get physical therapy within 1-2 months of the pain starting, it can help prevent you from progressing to the other stages. Otherwise, you will need to wait out the process.

If you are having general shoulder pain with limited motion these exercises can help you.

At Home Exercises

Table slides (flexion and abduction)

flexion: sit facing the table with hand on table

flexion: using towel lean forward and stretch arm straight

abduction: sit facing sideways with hand on table

abduction: using towel, lean sideways to stretch shoulder

Wall slides (flexion and abduction)

flexion: face the wall with hand on the wall

flexion: using towel slide hand up the wall

abduction: facing sideways with hand on the wall

abduction: using the towel, slide hand up the wall sideways

Internal Rotation behind the back

place strap over shoulder with the uninjured hand grabbing it in front of your body

injured hand will grab the strap behind or at your side

pull down on strap with uninjured hand, which will then pull the injured arm up to stretch

External Rotation stretch at wall

stand facing a door way with elbow bent to 90 degrees and hand one wall

These exercises are range of motion and stretching exercises to help reduce the frozen shoulder time. Once the pain is relieved and range of motion is back to within normal, strengthening should be performed. See my Rotator cuff post here for some exercises.

Also, please see a PT for a supervised exercise program and manual therapy including ROM exercises to help you to not suffer. PROM and stretching in conjunction with exercises will help improve pain and ROM. See my post here for some manual therapy techniques that might be used.

A warm compress on the shoulder before and after the exercises and throughout the day can help relieve some of the pain.

Because Adhesive Capsulitis is a condition that can be very debilitating, there are other more invasive treatments. These treatments include injections and manipulations but are not necessary if you seek treatment sooner.