Two suggested exercises are given for the pectorals and anterior deltoids and external rotators.


Click here to order Shoulder Injuries – Prevention and Treatment at a pre-publication discount, or read on for more editorial extracts:





Surgery: why shoulders go wrong

and what can be done to repair them

The shoulder joint is often injured in the throwing athlete because it has a greater range of movement than any other joint in the body, and because its stability depends upon intact muscles and ligaments rather than supporting bony structures.



The five phases of throwing are wind-up, cocking, acceleration, deceleration and follow-through. The forces generated during these phases are considerable and the resulting stresses generated around the shoulder joint make it prone to acute and chronic inflammatory conditions and injuries. A poor throwing technique will exacerbate the potential for chronic inflammatory shoulder conditions.



An orthopaedic surgeon lists the various approaches to treatment including:



* Clinical examination

* Imaging

* Other diagnostic tools

* Non-operative treatment

* Operative treatment




Case study
How a keen club golfer was
cured of a nagging shoulder pain

An avid club golfer with a handicap of 4 and a right-handed stroke asked for help with his nagging left shoulder pain that had recently become markedly worse and finally was threatening to stop him playing. He said he knew he

should have asked for help sooner, but he thought it would just go away



(This is one of the most commonly heard statements by treating practitioners!).



It had now been hanging around for about six months in total, despite regular coaching.



Assessment: examination showed all the signs of rotator-cuff tendinitis

(inflammation and microscopic breakdown of tendon), with accompanying weakness of the muscle itself, leading, over time, to extra shearing of the ball in his socket joint on follow-through.



This would likely cause an impingement of his already thickened tendon under the bony acromial arch of the shoulder, giving him the sharp stabs of pain he complained of. Full details of the treatment are given, which include:



* Systematic stretching regime by the patient

* The ‘release’ of muscle tightness by deep-tissue massage

* Trigger-point therapy

* Heat

* A home programme of self-pressure massage with a tennis ball

* Mobilising of the tight parts of the capsule of the shoulder with seat-belts



This regime resulted in the golfer achieving one of his best-ever scores in the Queensland Open Tournament three months later.


Click here to order Shoulder Injuries – Prevention and Treatment at a pre-publication discount, or read on for more editorial extracts:





The diagnosis and treatment of

acromioclavicular injuries in athletes

Acromioclavicular (AC) joint injuries most commonly occur in athletic young adults involved in collision sports, throwing sports, and overhead activities such as upper-extremity strength training.



They account for 3% of all shoulder injuries and 40% of shoulder sports injuries. Athletes in their second and third decade of life are more commonly affected and men are injured more commonly than women are.



The athlete who sustains an acromioclavicular injury commonly reports either one of two mechanisms of injury: direct or indirect.



Direct force: This is when the athlete falls onto the point of the shoulder, with the arm usually at the side and adducted. The force drives the acromion downwards and medially. 70% of acromioclavicular joint injuries have been found to be the result of a direct injury.



Indirect force: This is when the athlete falls onto an outstretched arm. The force is transmitted through the humeral head to the acromion, therefore the acromioclavicular ligament is disrupted and the coracoclavicular ligament is stretched.



Treatment: the treatment of acromioclavicular joint injuries varies

according to the severity or grade of the injury. AC joint injuries are an important source of pain in the shoulder region and must be evaluated carefully.



The management of these injuries is nonoperative in the majority of cases.

No matter what form of treatment is chosen, the ultimate goal is to restore painless function to the injured AC joint in order to return the athlete safely and as quickly as possible back to their sport. This is possible in the majority of acromioclavicular joint injuries.







Practical advice on achieving

balanced upper-body development

Chronic shoulder injury is a common problem, and not just for athletes. Among the population at large, day-to-day activities such as DIY or gardening can produce chronic pain, as can resistance work in the gym, when enthusiasts pile on the weight without paying heed to the need for balanced strengthening.



Adults beyond the age of 50 are more vulnerable in general to rotator-cuff tears, the incidence increasing with age.



Among sportspeople ‘overhead athletes’ are at increased risk of chronic shoulder injuries. The overhead group covers a broad range of sports including swimming, tennis, cricket, javelin and baseball, all of which involve variations on the generic throwing action where the arm moves above the head.



The throwing movement recruits a large number of muscles and combines a large range of arm motion with high forces or speeds at the shoulder joint. All overhead athletes tend to perform many repetitions of the movement, usually with a dominant arm only, as part of their sports training. Here’s our strategy:



Step 1: equalise front and rear strength: the starting point is a balanced programme for front and rear shoulder muscle development. Opposing muscle groups are trained equally. While exercises for the anterior shoulder and pectorals develop power, to train just these muscles will unbalance the shoulder.



Step 2: develop good pulling form: it is essential to perform pull or row exercises with correct technique in order to ensure that the middle trapezius,

rhomboids and lower trapezius muscles are properly recruited.



Step 3: isolate the rotator cuff: the small but crucial muscles of the rotator cuff are targeted alongside the lower traps to avoid developing

dysfunction or weakness.



To achieve the above strategy, four exercises are given to target the following muscle groups:



1. Subscapularis and pectoralis minor, the shoulder’s medial rotators



2. Infraspinatus and teres minor, the shoulder’s external rotators



3. Supraspinatus (top of the rotator cuff), assisted by the deltoid

and infraspinatus



4. Lower trapezius, focusing on scapular depression


Apply today for your special pre-publication offer

Shoulder Injuries – Prevention and Treatment is one of a new series of workbooks from Peak Performance, the sports science newsletter. It is not available through any other source.



As a registered member of our official website, you qualify to receive a pre-publication copy of Shoulder Injuries – Prevention and Treatment at a discount. If you place your order today you pay our special price of just $38 (£20) instead of the full price of $50. Please click on the link below to go to the independent secure Worldpay site to give your payment details.



Immediately your payment is accepted, we’ll despatch your workbook. It contains more than 80 fully-indexed pages in a stout spiral bound cover. Here is a nutshell summary of what you receive:



* Proven techniques: all the advice in Shoulder Injuries – Prevention and Treatment has been scientifically tested on athletes and sports people and proven to be effective and safe

* Immediate despatch: your pre-publication issue is available for immediate despatch before it goes on world-wide sale

* $17 saving: the pre-publication price of Shoulder Injuries – Prevention and Treatment is a full $17 less than the official cover price. You pay $38 instead of $55

* Money-back guarantee: if, for any reason, you decide Shoulder Injuries – Prevention and Treatment doesn’t deliver what we promise, let us know and we’ll refund your money in full, immediately and without question.



You have received this special pre-publication offer through your subscription to one of our free mini-newsletters. To receive Shoulder Injuries – Prevention and Treatment please apply within the next 24 hours by clicking on one of the links in this message.



Please use the pre-publication offer form administered by Worldpay – an independent, guaranteed secure payment site.



Shoulder Injuries – Prevention and Treatment is published by Electric Word plc, publishers of the Peak Performance newsletter, Sports Injury Bulletin and Successful Coaching.