Know How Our iCliniq Doctor Helped a Sportsperson With Shoulder Pain

A patient who was involved in activities such as swimming and weightlifting for two years consulted our iCliniq doctor, complaining of pain in his shoulders. He gave a history of experiencing pinching pain in his left shoulder for the first time while weightlifting five months before he consulted with us. He mentioned that he tried withdrawing from exercise for a while and waited for the pain to subside, but it did not work in his favor. He also informed our doctor about consulting an orthopedic doctor previously and getting an X-ray, the reports of which, as he said, were completely normal. He specified that rest and medications had minimized his pain; even then, the pain had always returned upon weightlifting or exercising. He explained that he did not feel symptoms like swelling or pain upon applying external pressure but felt pain while moving his arm sideways, which had also spread down from his arms to the elbow. He also clarified that he did not experience weakness in the arm while holding objects, but while lifting heavy objects, he felt it. He further added saying he could do all his normal chores but was concerned about not being able to exercise. He also enquired about the possibility of muscle tears from weightlifting training.

Our iCiniq doctor analyzed the photographs and the reports attached by the patient and assured him that there were no issues with his shoulder and that the pain was due to a pinched nerve in the neck. He also diagnosed the condition to be cervical spondylitis. He explained that the nerve supply to that part of the shoulder and arm getting pinched in the neck could cause such pain while lifting heavy weights. Our doctor informed the patient that the causes were most likely jerky movements to the spine, like swimming or heavy weight lifting, and requested a cervical spine MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) to locate the nerve involvement. He also advised the patient to do neck physiotherapy, mild exercises, limit activities causing stress to the cervical spine, avoid forward bending, and adjust the neck's sitting posture while working. Finally, our doctor prescribed a few medications and requested a review after three days.

The patient reverted after three days and informed our doctor that his pain had reduced and that he had refrained from stretching the arm. He was very satisfied with our doctor's suggestions and thanked him wholeheartedly. He particularly appreciated our doctor for explaining his condition in detail and helping him relieve his pain. He specifically quoted the patience and kindness of our iCliniq doctor to be his best qualities.

Our doctor was glad that the patient had found relief and advised the patient to continue following his instructions without fail. He also mentioned that the patient could start exercising but had to refrain from weightlifting for three more weeks.