What is Shoulder Arthritis?

Arthritis of the shoulder can affect either of the two joints which are in the area of the shoulder. The more common type of arthritis is the one affecting the acromioclavicular joint, or the junction of the collar blade and the tip of the shoulder. This is the joint which gets frequently injured in cases of shoulder separations. Arthritis of the glenohumeral joint, which is the joint at the junction of the shoulder blade and upper arm is more rare. 

The Three Types of Arthritis affecting the Shoulder are

Osteoarthritis: It is the most common arthritis affecting the shoulder and it slowly leads to degeneration of the cartilage and more commonly affects the acromioclavicular joint. This usually affects people over 50 years of age. 

Rheumatoid Arthritis: It is a systemic condition causing inflammation of the joint cartilage leading to its destruction, this normally affects many joints on both sides of the body.

Post-traumatic arthritis: It can be caused by repeated stress like multiple shoulder dislocations or injury to the shoulder like after a car accident and can sometimes develop years after the injury.

The symptoms associated with arthritis of the shoulder can vary with activity levels and weather influences. Stiffness and swelling may be a major component in shoulder arthritis sometimes developing over years. It may become very painful to lift your arm making it difficult to perform basic activities such as combing your hair or brushing your teeth. There is often a feeling of weakness in the shoulder and it can be accompanied by grinding, clicking or catching because the joint has lost its cartilage. Sleeping on the affected shoulder gets very painful as the disease progresses

Some of the Factors that may put a Person at Risk for Shoulder Arthritis are
Heredity: Shoulder arthritis can run in the family. The presence of certain genes can predispose a person to developing arthritis of the shoulder.

Age: As a person ages the healing ability of the body decreases and developing arthritis at that time can make the disease progress much faster. Persons over 50 years of age are more prone to developing shoulder arthritis.

Injury: Prior shoulder injury makes a person more susceptible to developing shoulder arthritis. 

Arthritis of the shoulder is diagnosed by taking into account the patients medical history, physical examination reports as well as the symptoms reported by the patient. The doctor will look for extent of range of motion, tenderness or swelling of the affected joint and also the changes seen in the X-rays to determine the presence or progression of the disease. Sometimes the doctor will order an MRI scan to rule out additional problems.  Read More...