Joint pain is a common complaint around the globe. Regardless of age, gender, or race, anyone is susceptible to joint pain. Because joints are utilized for movement, they are highly exposed to stress and pressure. One of the most overworked joints of the body is the shoulder. It is at a high risk for sprains and injuries.
Without knowledge of different health conditions, you may not know that you are already experiencing a certain kind of complication that needs immediate medical attention. Recognizing pain may be easy, but identifying the underlying causes is not so simple. That is why it is crucial for anyone to know the symptoms of shoulder joint pain so as to be able to address the problem appropriately.
As with any other symptom or disease, pain is probably the number one indicator that something is wrong with your body. There are different characteristics of pain such as burning, stabbing, cramping, or dull. These characteristics are vital to determining what certain condition you are experiencing.
- Change in color. Redness is usually noticed as a result of inflammation. A bluish color of the skin, like that of a bruise could mean that there are injured veins in the shoulder.Tenderness accompanied by a feeling of warmth around the joint could indicate a sunken area as a result of dislocation or could be a sign of a fracture.
- Swelling. This can be localized on a certain area or could be widespread in the arm. This symptom could be the result of inflammation of certain parts such the bursa, dislocation or fracture, or even sunken areas. Swelling could also be stimulated by muscle spasms.
- Weakness. This is normal when you are experiencing an illness. However, when it comes to shoulder joint pain, weakness could be a result of muscle or nerve damage. It is therefore one of the symptoms of shoulder joint pains as it could lead to the inability to use the joint. So it’s quite important to distinguish normal weakness from weakness brought on by nerve or muscle damage.
- Numbness. This symptom could be a result of radiculopathy, a condition wherein nerves are pinched or compressed. Numbness is felt when there is a loss of sensation, burning sensation or altered sensation.
- Deformity or change in appearance. A simple difference in the shape of your shoulders could indicate a dislocation or fracture. What could cause this are ligament tears, which could result in the irregular positioning of bone structures.
When these common symptoms of shoulder pain go along with other symptoms such as difficulty in breathing and tightness or compressed feeling in the chest, you must seek medical assistance immediately, as these could be a symptom of an underlying heart disease.
To wrap it up, it is always best to have knowledge about these things so as to know what problem to address.