How to Know if a Shoulder Injury is Serious

Sometimes things happen, and you injure yourself but push on due to circumstances. If you have injured your shoulder recently and found yourself in this position, you may not have known just how serious your injury is or was. 

If you find yourself in a situation where you aren’t sure if your shoulder injury is serious, or if you pushed past the injury and are now questioning the seriousness, what should you do? You are ever questioning the seriousness of a shoulder injury at any point, here is a quick guide to knowing if your shoulder injury is serious:

Look at Your Shoulder

If immediately after the injury, your shoulder just doesn’t look right or looks deformed, that is a sure sign that your injury may be serious. Swelling is also an indicator that your injury may be serious. If you show signs of deformity or swelling, you should definitely seek medical treatment.

If you pushed through the injury due to the circumstances at the time, and are only showing these symptoms later, you should still seek out medical treatment. Visual cues that something is wrong with your shoulder, as well as swelling, indicate an injury that should be seen by a medical professional.

Pain

If you are in immediate, intense pain, you should clearly seek medical help. If the pain comes later, you should also get a medical opinion on your injury. You may also not know the extent of your injury or pain until hours after the injury. If you injure yourself during the day, and find that you experience pain at night that prevents you from sleeping, this is another indication that you may have a serious shoulder injury.

Another feeling that could indicate serious injury is the feeling that your shoulder is out of its socket. While this may not specifically feel like acute pain, it could still indicate a serious injury.

Impaired Movement

If you find that your movement is impaired, this is another indication of a serious shoulder injury. Immediate or delayed inability to use the shoulder at all is an obvious sign that you need medical treatment. Also pay attention to whether you can raise your arm over your head and perform your other everyday movements with your shoulder and arm. Any impaired movement could indicate a serious injury.

Weakness or Numbness

If you experience any weakness or numbness in the arm or hand associated with this injury, whether immediate or delayed, this is another sign to get some medical help. While you may not associate these symptoms with a shoulder injury, the injury to it could affect the arm and hand.

Test Yourself

If you are still unsure if your injury is serious, you can turn to some tests, such as a rotator cuff injury test. If your pain is only mild, or your swelling is minimal, you may think that time will heal the soreness. However, ignoring some shoulder injuries just makes them worse, and a minor injury could turn into a major one. Taking a test like a rotator cuff injury test will let you know if your seemingly minor shoulder injury has a deeper issue that needs treatment, such as physical therapy, that may help prevent a worse injury.

There are several indicators that your shoulder injury may be serious, including visible deformity, swelling, pain, impaired movement, and weakness or numbness in the arm or hand. If you experience any of these, be sure to seek medical treatment.