The rotator cuff and rotator cuff tendons are often involved in shoulder pain, and targeted with our treatment. Dr Chris Littlewood is a Physio and senior research fellow at the University of Sheffield, and spends a large portion of his time studying and treating shoulder pain, including rotator cuff tendinopathy. In this episode, Chris and I discuss how to identify rotator cuff tendinopathy and other types of shoulder pain, and how you can direct your treatment for rotator cuff tendinopathy. We also explore:

Other sources of shoulder pain
Clues that the cervical spine could be referring pain to the shoulder
Unstable shoulder
Red flags
When to image the shoulder
When bursal thickness or effusion is or isn’t a problem
Shoulder assessment
Stiff painful shoulders
Treatment for rotator cuff tendinopathy
Improving exercise adherence
When to perform special orthopaedic tests
Injections
Surgery
Is there really a rotator cuff exercise, compared to a scapular muscle exercise?
Do exercises isolate the rotator cuff?

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