Shoulder Bursitis Treatment in Columbia, SC

What is Shoulder Bursitis?

Bursitis in the shoulder is caused by swelling in the bursa. The bursae are sacs that are filled with fluid. They fill the space between bones and connective tissue with cushioning, which lets muscles, tendons, and bones move together smoothly.

The bursae in the shoulder protect the area between the rotator cuff muscles and the highest point of the shoulder blade. Bursae keep the muscles and bones from rubbing against each other when you move your arms or lift them.

Shoulder Bursitis Symptoms

Bursitis can cause shoulder pain that comes on quickly or slowly. You might feel a slight ache, a sharp pain, or just a little soreness.
Other signs of bursitis in the shoulder are:

Shoulder pain or a feeling that the shoulder is swollen
It hurts to move around
Pain at night when sleeping on the affected side
Sharp or biting pain when the arm is moved up and down

At Midlands Orthopaedics & Neurosurgery, our team of physicians and physical therapists are dedicated to finding the best treatment plan for your shoulder bursitis.

Schedule Now

Types of Shoulder Bursitis

There are several different types of shoulder bursitis, such as:

Chronic – Shoulder bursitis that lasts for a long time that can be caused by repeated accidents or bouts of acute bursitis. It’s the most common kind of bursitis in the shoulder. This ongoing inflammation can make your arms and shoulders weaker over time and this can cause pain in other parts of the body, like in a different part of the shoulder, neck, or elbow
Acute – This happens quickly, often because of an accident or injury, and hurts to touch or move the shoulder
Infectious – In rare cases, bacterial infections like staph infections can lead to septic shoulder bursitis. The shoulder may be red or black and feel warm to the touch and you might feel sick, have a fever, and be in a lot of shoulder pain

Shoulder Bursitis Treatment

Treatments for bursitis in the shoulder are used to help relieve symptoms and with time treat the condition completely. Nonsurgical treatments include but are not limited to:

Activity changes – Temporarily stopping the activities that irritate the shoulder can help give the joint rest and relieve symptoms, including inflammation
Ice – This helps reduce inflammation, which means reducing the pain
Medications – Over-the-counter pain medications like ibuprofen can help relieve pain and inflammation. Antibiotics prescribed by your doctor will help get rid of an infection that may be causing infectious bursitis of the shoulder
Steroid injections – This is a temporary solution that can help relieve pain and swelling of the bursae
Physical therapy – This will help strengthen weak muscles and improve the range of motion in the shoulder joint

If your symptoms get worse or don’t get better with non-surgical treatments, you may need to consider shoulder surgery. For bursitis, surgery could be done arthroscopically, by making small incisions and using a tiny camera, known as an arthroscope, to look inside the joint.

Shoulder Bursitis Care in South Carolina

If you’ve been experiencing shoulder pain from possible shoulder bursitis, come see one of our physicians to assess. Please call 803-256-4107, or click below.

Testimonials