How to know if your shoulder injury is serious

Athletes and active people often suffer shoulder injuries. How can you know if your pain is a sign of a serious shoulder injury? Should you wait a few days and see if it gets better? Or should you see a doctor? In this Ask Dr. Geier video, I share some signs that your shoulder injury could be serious.

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Please note: I don't respond to questions and requests for specific medical advice left in the comments to my videos. I receive too many to keep up (several hundred per week), and legally I can't offer specific medical advice to people who aren't my patients (see below). If you want to ask a question about a specific injury you have, leave it in the comments below, and I might answer it in an upcoming Ask Dr. Geier video. If you need more detailed information on your injury, go to my Resources page: https://www.drdavidgeier.com/resources/

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POPPING OUT OF PLACE
Whether it’s the ball popping out of the socket (shoulder dislocation) or the collarbone at the breast bone (sternoclavicular dislocation), shoulder instability could need surgery.

PAIN REACHING OVERHEAD
Pain reaching overhead, such as combing your hair or reaching into a cabinet, is a common complaint for people with rotator cuff issues, such as shoulder impingement or a rotator cuff tear.

PAIN REACHING BEHIND YOUR BACK
Pain reaching behind your back, such as tucking in your shirt or putting on a seat belt, is another sign of impingement or possibly a rotator cuff injury.

PAIN REACHING OUT AWAY FROM YOUR BODY
Pain reaching out away from your body, such as reaching into a refrigerator to remove a carton of milk, can be a sign of impingement or possibly a rotator cuff injury.

WEAKNESS
Weakness separate from pain with overhead or other motions can signify a rotator cuff tear. Often it can be difficult by exam, though, to determine if pain is causing the shoulder to be weak, or if it’s weak from a muscle or tendon tear.

This list of signs of a serious shoulder injury is not comprehensive. If you have shoulder pain that isn’t getting better, or you are concerned and can’t do the activities you want to do, consider seeing a doctor or orthopedic surgeon.