Rotator cuff injuries can be painful and debilitating. Depending on the seriousness of the tear, surgery may be necessary. Whether you have surgery or depend only on rehabilitation exercises to treat your shoulder, you must allow the shoulder to heal for a while before attempting to exercise it. After a tear, or surgery to repair it, you should wait until movement is possible without pain before attempting rehab exercises.
Range of Motion Exercises
After a rotator cuff injury, it is important to restore flexibility and range of motion to your shoulder. Range of motion exercise increases shoulder flexibility with gentle movement at first and progressing to a wider range of movement as flexibility returns. According to the University of Washington, after the shoulder has healed for about four weeks, is comfortable, and range of motion and flexibility improves, strengthening exercises can begin.
Stretching Exercises
Stretching exercises help increase mobility and reduce stiffness in rotator cuff injuries. Initiated after a brief healing period when movement is possible without pain, stretching is gentle at first and increases as the pain from the stretch decreases. Stretching and range of motion exercises allows normal movement to return. MD Guidelines suggests gentle stretching, avoiding stress on the healing shoulder tendons. With strengthening exercises, normal activity usually returns within a few months.
Strengthening Exercises
Rehabilitation of a torn rotator cuff, achieved in stages progresses to the strengthening stage after range of motion returns. According to the American Academy of Orthopaedic surgeons, patients typically utilize a sling for the first month after injury or surgery and limit use of the shoulder. Therapist supervised passive range-of-motion exercises aid in gaining flexibility after which strengthening exercises begin and continue for six to 12 weeks. Normal activity and range of motion return in four to six months.
