The Management of Shoulder Pain in the Elderly: Focusing on Clinical Characteristics and Conservative Treatment

ABSTRACT

Shoulder pain is a common problem in the elderly, which can frequently lead to disabilities. Adhesive capsulitis, rotator cuff disease, and osteoarthritis are main causes of shoulder pain in the elderly. Because the use of the upper extremity is especially pertinent to maintain independence in the elderly, proper management of shoulder pain is crucial to preserve or restore functional independence by reducing the degree of pain as much as possible. Successful treatment of shoulder pain in the elderly depends on not only an accurate diagnosis of etiologies and appropriate treatments according to clinical characteristics, but also understanding that the mechanisms of developing those diseases were closely related to the degenerative changes with age.