The painful arc partway through lifting your arm — and why the name has fallen out of favour with the people who used to use it.
Shoulder impingement describes pain when the arm is raised, historically explained as tendon being pinched under bone. The current understanding is less mechanical: it is usually rotator cuff tendon that has been asked to do more than it has capacity for. That matters, because the treatment that follows from the two explanations is completely different.
Load, not rest. We assess what the cuff can currently tolerate and build from there, with hands-on treatment for comfort along the way. Where the tendon has been symptomatic for months, Shockwave therapy is a reasonable addition and is available on site.
Tendon adapts over months. Night pain usually improves early, full overhead capacity later — and the temptation to stop at the first is how this becomes a recurring problem.
Only the ones that make sense for this problem — listing all three on every page would be advertising, not information.
Subacromial decompression has been studied against placebo surgery and the results did not favour it. Exercise-based rehabilitation is the first-line treatment for good reason.
Sometimes there is a partial tear, and that is far less alarming than it sounds — cuff tears are common in people with no pain. Treatment is usually the same either way.
That painful arc is characteristic and is one of the things we test for. It tells us about the position where the tendon is most loaded, which we then work around and gradually back into.
Not sure this is what you have? That is exactly what an assessment is for — and if it turns out to be something else, we will tell you.
Related: Shoulder pain · Frozen shoulder · Physiotherapy at Forge West End
No referral is needed for a private appointment. Bring one only if you are claiming through Medicare, DVA, WorkCover or insurance.
Unit 4, 249 Montague Road — a short run from South Brisbane, Highgate Hill, Dutton Park, Woolloongabba and South Bank, and from the CBD across the river.
Can’t get to the clinic? We also offer physiotherapy home visits across the same area, with travel included in the fee.
Book your assessment at Forge West End and start a plan built around your goals — not a generic exercise sheet.
Unit 4, 249 Montague Road, West End QLD 4101 · No referral needed for a private appointment · HICAPS on site
