Rotator Cuff Injury
Most people with a shoulder injury will be tender when pressure is placed on the joint structures of the shoulder. Tender areas may include the glenohumeral joint, the subacromial bursa, and the acromioclavicular joint. If radiating pain does occur it will most likely be caused from a muscle spasm, and the symptoms will travel up the arm as opposed to down the arm with TOS. Numbness may also be caused by muscle spasms, but it is not a common symptom of shoulder pathology. Additionally, individuals will most likely feel pain with everyday shoulder activities and the range of motion of the shoulder will be restricted secondary to pain, whereas an individual with TOS may only aggravate the symptoms with arm elevation.
Signs in common with thoracic outlet syndrome
(Brantigan, 2004 & Watson et. al., 2009)
Signs in common with thoracic outlet syndrome
- Restricted and painful shoulder range of motion
- Weakness in shoulder musculature
- Positive rotator cuff testing
- Neer and Hawkins impingement tests (rules in rotator cuff pathology)
- Jobe (supraspinatus) test
- Speed’s test (rules in biceps tendon pathology)
- External rotation test (rules in infraspinatus pathology)
- Lift off and press belly test (rules in subscapularis pathology)
(Brantigan, 2004 & Watson et. al., 2009)