What is "snapping shoulder syndrome"

The scapula is a flat, wide bone that is located freely in the thickness of the muscles along the back surface of the chest. Between the shoulder blade and the rib cage there are bursae to reduce friction during movement. If clicking sounds, crunching and other sound phenomena occur during movements, doctors talk about “clicking scapula” syndrome. This is a fairly rare disease. Sound phenomena appear with morphological changes in the soft tissues (inflammation, scarring, swelling) between the scapula and the chest.

What is the cause of the unpleasant crunching sound?

If the shoulder “crunches,” there is a high probability that there is damage to the scapulothoracic joint. As a rule, it occurs due to frequently repeated physical activity in a position with arms raised up. If the shape of the chest is even slightly changed, pain may occur. With osteoarthritis of the shoulder joint, with bone growths, imbalance in the shoulder girdle and curvature of the spine become pronounced.

Don't fight the consequences - look for the cause of the clicks in the shoulder

Diagnosis

During the examination, the doctor will ask you about how long ago your symptoms began and whether you have had similar complaints in the past. A question will be asked about your profession, about playing sports. A history of scapula or rib fractures is important.

Next, palpation of the scapula and auscultation (listening) during movements are carried out.

To clarify the diagnosis, a chest x-ray may be prescribed, which reveals developmental anomalies, improperly healed fractures of the ribs and scapula. To clarify the diagnosis, a computed tomography may be prescribed, which produces a detailed image of the bones in a 3D projection. If bursitis is suspected, magnetic resonance imaging provides the most valuable diagnostic information.

Most often, clicks in the shoulder appear with the following diseases:

Periarthritis.

Due to inflammation of the tendons and capsule of the shoulder joint, severe pain occurs, but the cartilage remains intact. In 80% of cases, it is this disease that causes pain in the shoulder, which is accompanied by clicking sounds when moving. It develops due to bruises and excessive stress, after which the first symptoms become apparent after a few days. People with this disease are more often concerned about the question of why the arm does not move behind the back, and not “why the joint crunches.”

Incorrect posture.

Poor posture causes severe pain in the neck and shoulder. The spine is in the wrong position, the ligaments and muscles are subjected to too much, unnatural stress. Shoulders slouch, muscles can tear, and degenerative processes develop in joints. When moving, a characteristic crunching sound appears.

Arthrosis.

With this chronic disease, the cartilage degrades, the surface of the joint loses its smoothness, and osteophytes form in certain areas. A person experiences discomfort and pain in the shoulder, characteristic clicks, which at first do not cause discomfort, and then become more and more noticeable. The progression of an incurable disease can be stopped with the help of periodic courses of injections of the synovial fluid prosthesis “Noltrex” - a synthetic hypoallergenic drug.

Crunching in the shoulder often occurs with arthrosis

Arthritis.

With inflammation of the joint of various natures, clicking sounds can also be heard. Osteoarthritis is age-related degenerative changes in cartilage tissue that appear in people after fifty. Rheumatoid arthritis is an inflammation of the synovium and occurs at any age. What happens to the joint - arthrosis or arthritis - will be determined by the doctor, because the choice of treatment tactics depends on this.

Osteochondrosis.

It develops in those who spend a lot of time in one position, for example, sitting at a desk in the office for a long time. Disturbances in the functioning of the nervous system in the cervical region lead to pain in the shoulder, an unnatural position and, as a result, clicking due to friction of nearby surfaces.

If your shoulder is cracking, there may be a problem in your spine.

Physiological crunch

joint pain;
limited mobility;
swelling;
redness;
deformation.

If the joint clicks, it is likely that this is due to gas bubbles that burst when the joint capsule is stretched. These sounds are not accompanied by pain. They do not signal illness.

Sometimes the crunch is caused by friction inside the joint. This may be friction of joint surfaces, muscles, tendons. The stability of the shoulder is achieved by the abundance of soft tissues that support it. If they become inflamed and increase in volume, then friction appears. It causes discomfort and is often accompanied by characteristic sounds.

Who's at risk

A crunch in the shoulder with pain occurs more often in young people who play certain sports. Particularly dangerous are activities in which throwing movements are performed or the arms are often raised upward. Those at risk include builders, painters, hairdressers and conductors. Due to prolonged sitting at a computer, muscle tone suffers, so in the absence of periodic exercise, programmers, system administrators and representatives of other IT professions also run the risk of hearing a characteristic click.

Snapping shoulder syndrome is a common condition among hairdressers.

Symptom manifestation

A crunch in the shoulder blade when rotating the shoulder is a syndrome of various pathologies and diseases. The cause is joint injuries, neurological pathologies, and degenerative changes. To accurately determine the basis for the development of the disease, a complete examination must be performed.

The problem is determined not only by the unpleasant sound, but also by inflammatory processes that form in the joint capsules. When rotating movements occur, pain occurs. Most often, such pathologies develop due to severe overload, certain bruises and injuries. Diseases of internal organs can provoke certain changes and pathologies.

This can be not only the process of inflammation, but also degenerative changes in the tendon. Moreover, the muscle-tendon junction is often affected. The sliding of the joints becomes less soft, which in any case provokes swelling, tissue damage, and the occurrence of other pathologies.

Diseases can occur in an acute form, then the manifestation of extraneous sounds and pain will be more pronounced. There may be a chronic form that develops gradually, and in the initial stages the symptoms are minimally expressive.

Treatment tactics

In most cases, it is possible to get rid of the unpleasant crunching and prevent complications conservatively. The regimen includes kinesitherapy - exercises to strengthen muscles and correct posture, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and massage. If the pain is severe, steroid injections may be needed.

If the cause of severe pain is bone growths or tumors, open surgery or arthroscopy is also possible. After it, as after knee replacement, long-term rehabilitation is necessary. For 6-8 weeks, the patient should not perform activities that require raising his arms up. There are other restrictions.

The main thing in treatment is to reduce the load on the affected joint.

Pathological causes

The crunching itself should not be a cause for concern unless there are other symptoms. Unfortunately, pain often accompanies the crunch. This combination of symptoms can occur in a variety of diseases. Main reasons:

inflammation of the tendons of the rotator cuff muscles;
tendon sprain or rupture;
calcific tendinitis;
adhesive capsulitis;
shoulder arthrosis;
inflammation of the coracoclavicular or acromioclavicular joint.

Is it possible to prevent snapping shoulder syndrome?

It is in our power to prevent the occurrence of this syndrome due to improper load and frequent monotonous movements with arms raised up. If you are at risk, consider ways to reduce the impact on your shoulder joint.

Orthopedists and rheumatologists advise making sure to find time for short exercises in order to strengthen all muscle groups, primarily those that work little. Take time for prevention - and your joints will remain healthy, and you won’t hear a painful crunch for a long time!

Symptoms

A crunch in the shoulder blade when rotating the shoulder is the main symptom.
Quite significant pain, and it increases greatly with movement, unpleasant discomfort during physical exertion.
Swelling, redness.
Impaired motor activity.
Manifestation of high temperature, often a state of fever.

Experts point out that if at least one of the listed symptoms develops during rotational movements, you definitely need to undergo an examination in order to begin timely treatment, which will help eliminate the occurrence of other, more serious pathologies.

Pain under the shoulder blade

Under which shoulder blade the unpleasant symptoms will occur: right or left, depends on the reasons for their occurrence. Among them:

Stomach ulcer. It manifests itself as pain in the upper abdomen and under the left shoulder blade. The type of pain is periodic, with obvious seasonal exacerbation. Relief comes from vomiting, which occurs when the pain is especially severe.
In case of psychological difficulties, problems arise in the right shoulder blade. On the part of the heart, there is tingling, squeezing, and heat in the chest.

Myocardial infarction is manifested by acute pain behind the sternum, radiating to the back area on the left. A harbinger of a heart attack is an attack of angina, which occurs against the background of severe overexertion. Coronary heart disease gives similar symptoms: “presses” under the left shoulder blade with a transition to the left arm.
Problems of the gallbladder, as well as the bile ducts, cause pain not only in the right hypochondrium, but also under the right shoulder blade. The symptoms are accompanied by bitterness in the mouth and are aggravated by poor diet (fatty, fried, salty).

Pain on the left appears if perforation of a gastric ulcer occurs. At the same time, the patient is scared, the body is covered in cold sweat. Nausea and vomiting are possible. Attempts to alleviate the condition by lying on your back or side are usually unsuccessful.
Pneumonia or pleurisy causes referred pain when coughing under the right shoulder blade.
Intercostal neuralgia causes pain under the shoulder blade, mainly under the left, and is paroxysmal in nature. With any physical stress, they intensify, accompanied by a burning and tingling sensation in the left side of the back and in the heart area. When coughing, the pain is stabbing, most severe when taking a deep breath.
Inflammatory kidney diseases are accompanied by discomfort in the right shoulder blade, which is much worse when coughing. An important symptom is difficulty urinating.

If the above diseases are treated on time, back discomfort goes away.

Preventive actions

Crunching in the spine can be prevented using the following recommendations:

Proper nutrition.
A lifestyle characterized by activity, mobility, and regular physical activity.
It is important to avoid becoming overweight.
You should protect yourself from excessive stress.
It is important to control the correct position of the spinal column, and for this you need to monitor your posture.
Don't wear high heels.
Avoid the occurrence of infectious lesions and cooling of the body.

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Author:

— Medical journalist. First category nurse in the department of traumatology and orthopedics

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