What Treatments Are Available For Shoulder Osteoarthritis?
Osteoarthritis of the shoulder is not discussed as frequently as other forms of osteoarthritis, such as that in the hip or knee. But it can be a painful condition that restricts your movement if it goes untreated.
Although shoulder osteoarthritis is not as common as hip or knee osteoarthritis, it is still estimated that one in three people over the age of 60 have some level of osteoarthritis in one or both of their shoulders.
What’s more, research highlights how shoulder replacements are becoming more commonplace all over Europe, with countries including Germany, Denmark, Norway and Italy all showing a steady increase in the number of people undergoing such surgery.
Osteoarthritis is one of the most common reasons for someone needing to undergo a shoulder replacement.
However, surgery is not the only option if you suffer from osteoarthritis, as there are other treatments available, including radiotherapy.
What causes shoulder osteoarthritis?
The condition occurs when the protective cartilage in the shoulder joint begins to soften and degrade. Over time, the cartilage will crack and weaken.
Eventually, it will wear off completely, which is when patients typically experience the greatest pain, swelling and reduced range of movement.
If all the cartilage in the shoulder joint is worn away, bone spurs can form, which can create additional complications if they break off and “float” within the joint.
What are the signs of shoulder osteoarthritis?
The most common sign of shoulder osteoarthritis is pain in the shoulder joint – although pain alone doesn’t always mean you have osteoarthritis. Other forms of arthritis can also cause pain, as can injuries to the shoulder joint.
Stiffness in your shoulder is another sign that you may have osteoarthritis in this joint. In addition, you will start to lose the range of motion within the joint as the condition progresses.
While many people only experience pain in their shoulder when carrying out activities like lifting heavy objects or exercising initially, this can progress to pain even when you’re not moving your arm.
To accurately diagnose osteoarthritis in the shoulder, you’ll need to have a medical exam and likely an X-ray. In some cases a CT scan may also be recommended.
How can you treat osteoarthritis of the shoulder?
The most effective treatment for your shoulder osteoarthritis will depend on the degree to which it is affecting you and how much pain you are in.
In the first instance, you will normally be given shoulder exercises to help strengthen the joint and improve your range of motion. The advice is typically to avoid any activities that cause pain.
You can also use either ice or heat to help reduce the pain and you may be given anti-inflammatory medication. However, there is another option: low-dose radiotherapy.
Low-dose radiotherapy has been proven to be effective for both relieving pain and improving the motility of the shoulder joint.
One long-term study that looked at the effects of low-dose radiation on patients with periarthritis in the shoulder found that over half (56 per cent) reported that pain relief as a result of the treatment had lasted for years.
Low-dose radiotherapy has an anti-inflammatory effect on the joint, which not only alleviates the inflammation in the short term but also prevents it from recurring in many cases.
What does low-dose radiotherapy for osteoarthritis involve?
If you choose to go down this route to help alleviate your pain and improve movement in your shoulder joint, you will need to find a radiotherapy centre you are comfortable with. Once you have done so, you can book your consultations to discuss a treatment plan.
Typically, low-dose radiotherapy sessions to alleviate chronic pain and help patients with conditions like osteoarthritis are short. You will likely only need a few sessions to feel the benefit, although your consultant will discuss a treatment plan based on your condition.
Your consultant will look at the X-rays of your shoulder to assess the level of degradation in your joint. Then they will create a plan for your treatment based on what they can see and on what you tell them about how it is affecting your quality of life.
Each low-dose radiotherapy session will often only last a few seconds, as this is all the exposure that’s required to achieve the desired results. While most patients describe the radiotherapy as painless, some report an increase in their pain levels during their course of therapy.
However, this is often a good sign as it indicates that the affected area of the shoulder is responding well to the treatment. In such cases, we would expect the pain to reduce once the course of low-dose radiotherapy is complete.
