The Shoulder 

What Are the Structures of the Shoulder and How Does the Shoulder Function?

The shoulder joint is composed of three bones: the clavicle (collarbone), the scapula (shoulder blade), and the humerus (upper arm bone) (see diagram). Two joints facilitate shoulder movement. The acromioclavicular (AC) joint is located between the acromion (part of the scapula that forms the highest point of the shoulder) and the clavicle. The glenohumeral joint, commonly called the shoulder joint, is a ball-and-socket type joint that helps move the shoulder forward and backward and allows the arm to rotate in a circular fashion or hinge out and up away from the body. (The "ball" is the top, rounded portion of the upper arm bone or humerus; the "socket," or glenoid, is a dish-shaped part of the outer edge of the scapula into which the ball fits.) The capsule is a soft tissue envelope that encircles the glenohumeral joint. It is lined by a thin, smooth synovial membrane.

The bones of the shoulder are held in place by muscles, tendons, and ligaments. Tendons are tough cords of tissue that attach the shoulder muscles to bone and assist the muscles in moving the shoulder. Ligaments attach shoulder bones to each other, providing stability. For example, the front of the joint capsule is anchored by three glenohumeral ligaments.

The rotator cuff is a structure composed of tendons that, with associated muscles, holds the ball at the top of the humerus in the glenoid socket and provides mobility and strength to the shoulder joint.

Two filmy sac-like structures called bursae permit smooth gliding between bone, muscle, and tendon. They cushion and protect the rotator cuff from the bony arch of the acromion.

Healthy Shoulder Handbook: 100 Exercises for Treating and Preventing Frozen Shoulder, Rotator Cuff and other Common Injuries Author: Karl Knopf M.D. Description END PAIN, REGAIN RANGE OF MOTION AND PREVENT RE-INJURYMillions of people suffer from debilitating shoulder problems every year. With Healthy Shoulder Handbook, you can take yourself off that list. This friendly manual outlines the causes for common shoulder conditions, including shoulder impingement, rotator cuff, tendinitis, dislocation and repetitive motion injuries...

Shoulder Pain? The Solution & Prevention, Second Edition, Revised & Expanded Author: M.D.John M. Kirsch Description This is a self-help book written by John M. Kirsch, M.D., an Orthopedic Surgeon for the common man. It is the result of 25 years of research into a new and simple exercise to prevent rotator cuff tears and impingement syndrome in the shoulder, as well as treating these conditions and frozen shoulder...

The Frozen Shoulder Workbook: Trigger Point Therapy for Overcoming Pain and Regaining Range of Motion Author: Clair Davies NCTMB Description Author Clair Davies' own case of frozen shoulder led him to undertake an extensive study of trigger points and referred pain that eventually resulted in his best-selling Trigger Point Therapy Workbook...

Fixing You: Shoulder & Elbow Pain: Self-treatment for rotator cuff strain, shoulder impingement, tennis elbow, golfer's elbow, and other diagnoses. Author: Rick Olderman MSPT Description The shoulders are a floating system on the trunk, held in place and moved by muscular control. The foundation of shoulder movement is the shoulder blade which has precise resting and moving landmarks. Fixing You: Shoulder & Elbow Pain teaches you what these landmarks are and how to correct them to fix your shoulder pain...

FrameWork for the Shoulder: A 6-Step Plan for Preventing Injury and Ending Pain (Framework Active for Life) Author: Nicholas A. DiNubile MD Description Though today’s doctors examine just as many achy, injured shoulders as they do problematic knees and backs, only recently have advances in medicine and technology revealed the true functional anatomy of the shoulder and how it can become damaged and imbalanced...

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