How Does Aging Affect the Chances of a Rotator Cuff Tear
By Bob Downe
Aging is a major factor in the chances of many people developing a rotator cuff tear. As we grow older, any sporting or physical activities can lead to a tear caused by the tendons and muscles in the shoulder deteriorating.
Aging is a major factor in the chances of many people developing a rotator cuff tear. As we grow older, any sporting or physical activities can lead to a tear caused by the tendons and muscles in the shoulder deteriorating.
A degenerative rotator cuff tear is treated a little differently than a rotator cuff injury in a younger healthier person would be. The patient is usually given the option of some type of physical therapy.
In the case of a severe injury that is restricting or inhibiting the daily life of a patient, surgery may be recommended. Whether surgery is performed is determined by the patients age, how much motion they require to go through their daily life, their current health situation, and the extent of the rotator cuff tear.
There are four different muscles in the rotator cuff that are often called the SITS muscles. This anagram refers to the first letters in the muscle names: Supraspinatus, Infraspinatus, Teres minor, and Subcapularis. The supraspinatus is the muscle most often affected in a degenerative rotator cuff tear.
These four muscles are the ones that allow a person to raise their arm over their head and provide for a full rotation of the arm. Because of this, if the rotator cuff is injured or torn in any way, the patient will experience at the least, extreme discomfort, and worst, severe pain and loss of motion. The bursa sac will also become irritated and enflamed, adding to the pain in the shoulder.
As we age, the blood supply to the muscle tissue in the shoulder slows down, leading to a deterioration in the tissue of the muscles in the rotator cuff. It also causes the body to heal itself much slower.
Bone spurs can also develop and will cause friction and irritation in the bursa sac and the tendons that it protects. The tendons will then eventually become very weak. The slow blood flow to the weak tendon will not allow it to heal as it should. At this point, a surgeon may be the patient's last resort.
A degenerative rotator cuff tear is treated a little differently than a rotator cuff injury in a younger healthier person would be. The patient is usually given the option of some type of physical therapy.
In the case of a severe injury that is restricting or inhibiting the daily life of a patient, surgery may be recommended. Whether surgery is performed is determined by the patients age, how much motion they require to go through their daily life, their current health situation, and the extent of the rotator cuff tear.
There are four different muscles in the rotator cuff that are often called the SITS muscles. This anagram refers to the first letters in the muscle names: Supraspinatus, Infraspinatus, Teres minor, and Subcapularis. The supraspinatus is the muscle most often affected in a degenerative rotator cuff tear.
These four muscles are the ones that allow a person to raise their arm over their head and provide for a full rotation of the arm. Because of this, if the rotator cuff is injured or torn in any way, the patient will experience at the least, extreme discomfort, and worst, severe pain and loss of motion. The bursa sac will also become irritated and enflamed, adding to the pain in the shoulder.
As we age, the blood supply to the muscle tissue in the shoulder slows down, leading to a deterioration in the tissue of the muscles in the rotator cuff. It also causes the body to heal itself much slower.
Bone spurs can also develop and will cause friction and irritation in the bursa sac and the tendons that it protects. The tendons will then eventually become very weak. The slow blood flow to the weak tendon will not allow it to heal as it should. At this point, a surgeon may be the patient's last resort.
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