Moderate to severe shoulder pain can significantly affect your quality of life. The shoulder is a ball and socket joint that has a wider range of motion than any other joint in your body. It is strengthened and stabilised by a group of eight muscles, with tendons attaching these to the bones. The most important…
Upper limb injuries are common among rugby players and two thirds of these affect the shoulder. Most are the result of a misjudged tackle or direct impact. So, is there anything you can do to reduce your risk of shoulder injury from playing rugby? Good technique and game sense As with any sport, it’s important…
Few sports can compare with the speed and exhilaration of skiing. But the very things that make it so enjoyable also make skiing a risky sport. High-speed collisions and falls are common and these can cause injuries, some of which have a long recovery time. In this article, we look at some of the elbow…
The collarbone – or clavicle – is located between the sternum and shoulder. If you fall or receive a heavy blow to the bone, you can fracture your collarbone. There are different types of clavicle fractures depending on which section of the bone breaks: Midshaft fractures occurs in the middle of the bone. This is…
The elbow joint is supported and stabilised by two major ligaments – the medial, or medial ulnar, collateral ligament which is located on the inside of the elbow and joins the ulna (one of the two lower arm bones) to the humerus (upper arm bone); and the lateral, collateral ligament which is located on the outside…
There are three bones that make up your shoulder – the shoulder blade, collarbone and upper arm bone (humerus). Falling onto an outstretched arm is a common cause of proximal humerus fractures, which are fractures of the humerus close to the shoulder joint. A humerus shaft fracture occurs lower down your arm in the mid portion of the upper…
The radial head is the bumpy bit at the top of the radius bone where it meets the elbow. Your radius is one of the bones of your forearm, used to move your wrist and arm. Around a fifth of all acute elbow injuries are radial head fractures; it is one of the most common…
A dislocated elbow is a very painful injury that can stop you being able to use your elbow. It is one of the most common dislocation injuries, caused by the three bones in your elbow joint – the upper arm bone or humerus, the long bone in the forearm or ulna and the short bone…
If you have been diagnosed with tennis elbow, the British Elbow and Shoulder Society (BESS) has released a helpful video with information and exercises to help you manage your condition more effectively and support your recovery. Developed by BESS physiotherapists, it includes simple-to-follow exercises that you can do at home to relieve the pain of…
Orthobiologics belong to a relatively new branch of medicine called Regenerative Medicine. They are therapies developed from natural (biologic) substances, including cells and tissues, nucleic acids, proteins and sugars. Orthobiologics are promoted as a way to relieve pain and promote healing, either after an injury or post-surgery. However, while the concept is a good one…
If you are recovering from injury or surgery, there are two approaches to support your rehabilitation and recovery: manual therapy and exercise-based physiotherapy. In this article, we’ll explain the different approaches and consider their benefits in terms of pain relief, speed of recovery and overall rehabilitation. What is manual therapy? Manual therapy is where a…
A ganglion is a harmless, fluid-filled cyst. The majority (80%) occur in the wrist, although they can also develop at the base of the finger or on the finger itself where they may appear as a pea-sized swelling. They typically develop between the ages of 20 and 40 and are three times more likely to…
The rotator cuff tendons cover the head of the humerus (upper arm bone), attaching it to the shoulder blade and enabling you to raise and rotate your arm. The rotator cuff keeps your arm within your shoulder socket and has a lubricating sac, called a bursa, which allows it to slide smoothly as you move…
If you are reading this article, it could be that you have undergone surgery on your shoulder, but the results are not what you or your orthopaedic surgeon expected. Here we outline how to identify if your shoulder surgery has failed and what can be done about it. Reasons for undergoing shoulder surgery There are…
Keyhole surgery – referred to as shoulder arthroscopy – is an effective way to diagnose and treat problems within your shoulder joint. Unfortunately there is no cure for arthritis, which is a degenerative condition that worsens over time, however there are treatments that can potentially slow the deterioration of the affected joint and relieve the symptoms. One of…
Glenohumeral arthritis – also called shoulder arthritis or shoulder osteoarthritis – is a degenerative condition that causes worsening pain and stiffness in the shoulder joint. What causes glenohumeral osteoarthritis? The condition is linked to ageing, as wear and tear of the shoulder joint over time can cause the cartilage lining the joint to become thin…
Calcific tendinitis is a relatively rare condition caused by a build-up of calcium deposits in your tendons. It can occur anywhere in the body, but the shoulder joint is most commonly affected and, in some cases, the condition results in severe pain. Women between the ages of 40 and 60 are most often affected by…
Any kind of surgery carries risks, so it is prudent to understand the pros and cons of the procedure you’re having. As orthopaedic surgeons we talk to our patients about the possible treatment options – including non-surgical options if there are any – and discuss the potential complications that may arise from surgery. Our aim…
Osteoarthritis affects around 10 million people in the UK. The condition – which is a degenerative disease predominantly linked to ageing – occurs most often in weight-bearing joints like the knee (5.4 million people in the UK) and the hip (3.2 million people in the UK). Arthritis of the thumb is also common, occurring in…
Rheumatoid arthritis is an auto-immune condition. This is where the body’s immune system starts to attack the healthy tissues, causing pain, inflammation and deformity. The reasons why people develop rheumatoid arthritis are unclear and, sadly, there is no cure. However early treatment with disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) may help with remission of symptoms, according to…
If you have severe arthritis is both of your shoulders, you may be offered double shoulder replacement surgery – also called bilateral shoulder replacement. The procedure involves removing both of the damaged shoulder joints and replacing them with artificial implants. Normally, surgery takes place a few months apart to allow use other hand whilst the operated…
Tennis elbow is a painful condition that affects the outer side of the elbow joint. It is also referred to as lateral epicondylitis. The condition is the result of repetitive stress to your elbow and forearm. Although tennis can be a cause, tennis elbow can develop from any kind of repetitive movement that overuses the…
You might not think your shoulder has much in common with a flower, but here’s the thing… …way back in history as far as the Ancient Greeks, humans have noticed something interesting about proportion and the way one element links to another. Referred to as The Golden Ratio (or the Divine Proportion), objects that we…
It’s been a long wet winter and sports-lovers amongst us can’t wait to get outside and enjoy our favourite sports over the summer months. There’s no doubt that sport is good for our physical and mental health but, sadly, there is also a risk of injury, particularly at the start of the season when we…
Shoulder or elbow pain can be debilitating. We use these joints for everything from brushing our teeth to reaching to take something down off the supermarket shelves, so it can be hard to rest the affected area and pain can make everyday activities like these a challenge. Thames Shoulder and Elbow offers a range of…
Chronic shoulder pain is pain that lasts for six months or longer. There are many different causes of long-term pain including injuries and musculoskeletal conditions. While traumatic injuries often cause acute pain that requires immediate medical attention, people with low level chronic shoulder pain may simply learn to live with it and not seek treatment.…
Your humerus is the only bone in your upper arm. A humeral shaft fracture is a break to middle portion of your upper arm bone. You may also break it at the top where it meets your shoulder (a proximal humerus fracture) or at the bottom where it meets your elbow (a distal humerus fracture).
Your shoulder is the most flexible joint in your body, able to perform many different types of movement. Unfortunately this also means it is the joint most prone to dislocation.
Your distal humerus is the lower end of your upper arm bone (humerus) where it joins the elbow. A fractured distal humerus is a very painful injury that can make it difficult to move your elbow. This type of fracture – which has a risk of long-term complications – is relatively rare, accounting for only…
If you dislocate your shoulder, you are at increased risk of it happening again. As the most flexible joint in your body, the shoulder can perform a wide range of different movements including lifting and rotating your arm and turning it in many different directions.
A proximal humerus fracture is a type of broken shoulder. The anatomy of your shoulder comprises the humerus (upper arm bone), scapula (shoulder blade) and clavicle (collarbone). The humeral head at the top of the humerus is the ball part of your shoulder joint, which rests inside the shoulder socket. A proximal fracture is a…
Your shoulder is the most mobile joint in your body, enabling you to reach above your head, lift and rotate your arm and move it in many different directions. Unfortunately, this flexibility makes the shoulder particularly prone to dislocation and after it has dislocated once, your shoulder joint can be vulnerable to repeated full or partial…
As the peak of the summer holiday season approaches, we’re seeing growing numbers of people with elbow injuries caused by playing sport.
Summer is finally here and you might be heading outside to take part in your favourite warm weather sports like swimming, beach volleyball, tennis and golf.
A fracture is a break (full or partial) in one of the bones. Fractures are often caused by some kind of traumatic high-impact injury, or as the result of stress due to overusing the bone. Some medical conditions – such as cancer or osteoporosis – cause weakening of the bones which can result in pathological…
Tennis elbow, or lateral epicondylitis, is a painful condition that affects the bony bump on the outside of your elbow where the tendons of the forearm muscles attach to the bone. You may also experience pain and weakness in your wrist and forearm, particularly when performing movements like gripping, shaking hands or turning a doorknob.
A clicking or cracking sound when you move your shoulder or feeling a popping or grinding sensation in the joint at the top of your arm (crepitus) can have a number different causes. Some of these may be nothing to worry about but others might be a sign of some kind of underlying health condition…
Rock climbing – whether you’re outdoors or on a climbing wall – is growing in popularity and it’s easy to see why. As well as keeping you physically fit, it challenges your endurance, your agility and your mental acuity. But, the rise in numbers of people participating in rock climbing has been accompanied by a…
If you have been diagnosed with shoulder impingement you are probably experiencing a range of debilitating symptoms including pain moving from your shoulder down as far as your wrist when you lift your arm or reach in front of you, difficulties sleeping due to pain or achiness in the affected areas, problems reaching behind your back and…
If you have been diagnosed with shoulder osteoarthritis, your orthopaedic surgeon will set out the treatment options that are available to you. These will depend on a range of factors, including the severity of your condition, your general state of health and your age. As a general rule, the least invasive treatments will always be…
If you are scheduled to undergo surgery in 2022, we recommend taking proactive measures now to optimise your health before your procedure. We call this process ‘prehabilitation’ and while it may be less familiar than rehabilitation (which is the recovery process after surgery), it is no less important.
Shoulder arthritis of the main ball and socket joint, also known as the glenohumeral joint, results in pain and stiffness in the shoulder. This pain is provoked by a loss of cartilage which normally allows the bones to move smoothly over one another and prevents rubbing.
As the most mobile joint in the body, able to move freely in many different directions, the shoulder is particularly prone to dislocation.
The exact causes of frozen shoulder are not fully understood although certain factors appear to increase your risk of developing the condition. Also called adhesive capsulitis, frozen shoulder is characterised by pain and stiffness in the shoulder that worsens over time. It is due to the capsule around your shoulder joint (the connective tissues surrounding…
If you are experiencing pain centring on the bony bump on the inside of your elbow, you may have a condition called golfer’s elbow. Sometimes the pain also spreads into the forearm. Although golfer’s elbow is less well-known and less common than tennis elbow, both are forms of tendinopathy and can be debilitating.
Tennis elbow – also called lateral epicondylitis – affects the tendons in your elbow. It is a painful condition that can develop when the tendons become overworked, often due to making repetitive arm and wrist movements. Tennis elbow is one of the most common causes of persistent elbow pain, affecting around 1-3% of the population.…
The AC joint is located at the top of your shoulder where the collarbone and shoulder blade meet. It is vulnerable to injury during certain types of high impact sports or as the result of a heavy fall into the shoulder. The AC joint may also develop overuse injuries and over time this may lead…
Your acromioclavicular (AC) joint is at the top of your shoulder where your collarbone and acromion part of the shoulder blade meet. If you have AC joint arthritis, the top of your shoulder might feel painful and you may have problems reaching your arm across your body. There are different types of AC joint arthritis…
Calcific tendonitis is a build-up of calcium deposits in a tendon. It can occur anywhere in the body but the condition commonly develops in the rotator cuff, which is the group of tendons that connect important shoulder muscles from your shoulder blade to your upper arm. When there is a build-up of calcium in this…
Your biceps muscle runs along the front of your upper arm, from your shoulder to your elbow. The upper part of this muscle is attached to your shoulder by two tendons (the proximal biceps tendons): the long head of the biceps connects the muscle to the top of the shoulder socket (the glenoid) while the…
Your biceps muscle is located at the front of your upper arm. When the muscle contracts it pulls the forearm up and rotates it outwards. Tendons attach the biceps muscle to the shoulder blade (scapula) and the radius bone of the forearm. There are two proximal biceps tendons, of which the long head of biceps…
A frozen shoulder is a painful and debilitating condition that can last for several years. The causes are not always fully understood but the condition – also caused adhesive capsulitis – is the result of thickening of the capsule of connective tissue that surrounds the shoulder joint. As it thickens it becomes tight which restricts…
Of all the joints in the human body, the shoulder joint is the most mobile. To facilitate the full range of movements made by your shoulder, it is supported by a network of muscles, tendons and ligaments. Frozen shoulder (adhesive capsulitis) is a condition caused by the capsule of connective tissue that surrounds the shoulder…
Certain nerves are particularly prone to becoming compressed due to the way the surrounding bones are structured. The ulnar nerve is one of these. It runs over one of the elbow bones very close to the surface of the skin. People often refer to this area as “the funny bone” because of the strange sensation…
The ulnar nerve carries sensation from the ring finger and little finger, and part of the palm and the back of the hand. It travels down inside of the arm to the hand and is used to control certain movements of the fingers and wrist.
If you have been diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome you may or may not require medical treatment. Sometimes the condition improves quickly on its own, however for some people it can cause persistent symptoms or permanent loss of feeling or strength in the hand and it’s important to receive proper medical treatment.
Carpal tunnel syndrome is a debilitating condition that occurs when the median nerve becomes compressed or squeezed as it passes through the carpal tunnel in your wrist.
If you are scheduled to undergo shoulder or elbow surgery, one of the things we recommend is to find out as much as you can about the procedure you’re having so you feel well-informed, which can help to alleviate anxiety and avoid stress. You may be wondering what type of anaesthetic you will be given…
If you are due to undergo orthopaedic surgery on your shoulder or elbow, your surgeon may suggest an arthroscopic procedure. But what is arthroscopy and how will you benefit as a patient? Here are some of the things you need to know…
This is the time of year when many of us would normally be heading off to enjoy our two weeks of Winter sunshine on the ski slopes. Unfortunately, the impact of Covid means that skiing is off the agenda this year for most of us but as we begin our slow return to normality hopefully…
If you suffer from arthritis, you may experience an increase in the severity of your symptoms during the winter. Although experts aren’t completely sure why, it’s certainly true that colder weather leads to an increase in joint pain and stiffness for many people. It is believed that barometric pressure may play a role – the…
As orthopaedic surgeons we encourage our patients to take an active role in managing and treating their condition.
If you’re used to working out, sustaining any kind of injury can be very frustrating. Here at Thames Shoulder and Elbow, we treat many different types of shoulder injuries and one of the questions we’re asked most often is “how soon can I get back to the gym?” We understand the desire to maintain your…
Shoulder dislocations are normally caused by a traumatic injury, such as a fall from a height, tripping and landing heavily onto the shoulder, or by a hard blow, such as a high-speed collision. When the shoulder dislocates the upper arm bone (humerus) pops out of the socket in your shoulder joint, often causing extensive damage…
A dislocated shoulder is a very painful injury that occurs when your upper arm bone pops out of the socket in your shoulder joint. Because the shoulder is the most mobile joint in the body it is particularly susceptible to dislocation and there is a risk of repeated dislocations if the joint becomes unstable.
In 2019, the head of medicine for English rugby called on managers of the Rugby Football Union (RFU) to consider making significant changes to the professional game to address a big jump in the severity of injuries on the pitch.
Rugby is a fun, fast-paced sport that is as exciting to play as it is to watch. But, the price of competing in such a high impact contact sport is that rugby players are at particularly high risk of injury. In fact, rugby has the highest risk of injury per player per hour of any…
In the second of our blogs to mark National Arthritis Awareness Month, we are exploring the range of treatments available for people with elbow arthritis. This type of arthritis is one of the less common forms and you can find more information about the causes and what symptoms to look out for in our blog…
To mark Arthritis Awareness Month, we are looking at the causes of one of the less common forms of arthritis – elbow arthritis. Although elbow pain is a common problem it is rarely caused by arthritis and is more normally due to soft tissue problems, such as tennis elbow or golfer’s elbow, or the result…
Your shoulder is the most mobile joint in your body. It is made up of a ball and socket joint called the glenohumeral joint which is surrounded by a fibrous sleeve called the capsule.
Shoulder osteoarthritis is a painful condition which can affect any of the joints making up the shoulder girdle. Eventually it results in the wearing away of the cartilage in the joint.
Rotator cuff injuries are extremely common. Nearly three quarters (roughly 70%) of all visits to the doctor by UK patient with shoulder pain are due to rotator cuff problems. Your rotator cuff is a group of muscles and tendons around your shoulder joint. Their role is to stabilise the shoulder and keep the ball at…
Your collarbone connects the shoulder blade to the upper part of your breastbone. The medical name for this bone is the clavicle. At the outer end it makes a joint known as the acromioclavicular (AC) joint. The bone acts as protection to the nerves and blood vessels below as they transit from the neck to…
Golf is the fifth largest participant sport in England, according to England Golf’s biannual club membership report, last published in 2018. The report stated that more than two million people are playing golf at least twice a month. The average number of members per golf club has risen to 484 compared to 460 in 2016.…
An estimated one million people in the UK play golf. The combined appeal of a skilled and competitive sport played in the open air makes it easy to see why golf is a favourite pastime for many. However, golf can place a significant strain on your arms, shoulders, wrists and back, and golfing injuries can…
If you have joint pain your doctor may recommend having an injection of steroid (also called corticosteroid or cortisone) mixed with local anaesthetic, to relieve the discomfort and reduce inflammation. Steroid injections are given by doctors directly into the affected muscle or joint. They normally take a few days to start working and the effect…
As the Covid-19 pandemic was beginning in early March, an Italian doctor, Dr Daniele Macchine from Bergamo, said: “There are no more surgeons, urologists, orthopaedists, we are only doctors who suddenly become part of a single team to face this tsunami that has overwhelmed us…”
This is a question we often get asked, along with “How quickly can I get back to the gym after elbow surgery?” We understand what motivates patients to ask, particularly those with active lifestyles who are eager to continue training.
Tennis is one of our favourite summer sports and it’s not hard to see why. The fast-paced, exciting game, played on grass, clay or other hard courts, requires physical fitness and great hand-eye co-ordination. Players need to be fast and have good technique and physical endurance to run, position, swing and hit the ball throughout…
It can sometimes be hard to convince patients that rehabilitation after shoulder or elbow injury is a critical part of their treatment. However, without it you can be left with stiffness, loss of movement or weakness, which may become permanent.
Tennis is synonymous with summer for many of us. It is a high impact, fast-paced sport that is fun to play and great for fitness. Along with golf, it is one of the first sports to be permitted following the virus pandemic lockdown. For this reason, right now many people will be taking up the…
Stiffness in your elbow – sometimes called a contracture – means that you have lost some of the motion in the joint. This loss of ability to fully bend or straighten your arm could have a number of different causes. If you injure your elbow you may develop tightness in the soft tissues (muscles, tendonsand…
The shoulder is a ball and socket joint. The top of the arm bone, which is shaped like a ball, fits inside the socket in the shoulder blade and is held in place by tendons and ligaments, which form a capsule around the joint to help to support its movement. The rotator cuff is a…
Thames Shoulder and Elbow is an upper limb orthopaedic practice focused of delivering the highest level of orthopaedic care. As our name would suggest, we are specialists in the diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation for elbow and shoulder conditions, which also encompasses the upper arm, forearm and wrist. Led by orthopaedic consultant Mr Edward Ibrahim, Thames…
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