What is the Rotator Cuff?
Commonly mispronounced …. frequently *injured*, hurts a lot at night, and frequently *over-treated* — It’s important to have a basic understanding of what the rotator cuff is.
The rotator cuff are a series of 4 small muscles that are located around the shoulder and deep to the deltoid, a larger and better known muscle . The rotator cuff coordinates the function of the shoulder by harnessing the power of the larger deltoid, pectorialis, and other muscles and turning that power into useful, well coordinated, and fluid motion.
What is the Rotator Cuff? – YouTube Video
There are many different forms of common rotator cuff or shoulder injuries. The majority of rotator cuff problems we see are degenerative or attritional in nature. Some rotator cuff problems are acute or post-traumatic in nature. Other rotator cuff problems can be secondary to another problem in the shoulder we refer to as instability. Rotator cuff symptoms vary significantly. Shoulder pain from rotator cuff tendinitis can be more severe than the pain from a tear — and the shoulder pain associated with a large tear may be much less than the shoulder pain experienced by someone with a small tear.
In other columns we will discuss the specific issues regarding each issue that can affect the rotator cuff.
Adam has worked in the local news industry for the past two decades in Westchester County and the broader Hudson Valley. Read more from Adam’s author bio here.