Frozen shoulder, also known as adhesive capsulitis, is a condition that causes pain and stiffness in your shoulder joint.
A Frozen shoulder goes through 3 stages that can often take 2 years. Firstly, there is the Freezing Stage. This stage is very painful and is associated with your shoulder becoming very stiff in all directions of movement.
Secondly, there is the Frozen Stage. Where the shoulder is very stiff to move but the pain is gradually decreasing.
Lastly, is the Thawing Stage. Your shoulder is not very painful and the shoulder slowly regains it movement and flexibility.
Frozen shoulder can develop by itself, but is often associated with some minor injury to your shoulder. It may be been something that you really didn’t think much of at the time.
It can also develop after surgery, or after your shoulder has been immobilized in a sling.
Treatment for frozen shoulder involves stretching exercises and, sometimes, the injection of corticosteroids and local anaesthetics into the shoulder joint. In some cases, surgery may be needed to loosen the joint capsule through a procedure called a Shoulder Manipulation or through arthroscopic key-hole surgery.
