If the individual has been playing tennis for any amount of time, chances are that you know someone who has suffered from shoulder injuries at some point. Tennis can put a large amount of stress on the shoulder.
What are the types of shoulder injuries?
The overheads, serves and ground strokes all put substantial amount of stress on the shoulder. The shoulder joint is considered as the most mobile and versatile joint in the body. On the other hand, the versatile nature and mobility comes with a price. The shoulder is also the least stable of the large-sized joints and this combination of instability and mobility that makes it prone to injuries when playing an intense sport such as tennis.
Striking a ball during practice and a match requires the shoulder muscles to strike a delicate balance between stability and mobility as well as deceleration and acceleration. Shoulder sprains, strains and tendonitis are some of the common injuries that affect tennis players. When it comes to a strain, it is an injury to either the tendon or muscle while a sprain involves overstretching or tearing of the ligaments. In addition, tendonitis is triggered by a series of small stresses on the tendon.
Possible causes
The stress triggered by overuse or muscular imbalance are the typical causes for these types of injuries. The frequently injured area among tennis players is the rotator cuff. The repetitive movement during the tennis strokes can lead to the development of muscular imbalance as well as possible overuse stress on the rotator cuff.
Rotator cuff
The rotator cuff is a group of muscles mainly in the rear of the shoulder whose main function in tennis is to stabilize the shoulder and decelerate the arm after striking the ball. Even though these relatively small muscles have a vital role for protecting the shoulder by stabilizing it, they must perform the task while working in opposition to the strong muscles such as the chest.
A weak or fatigued rotator cuff can lead to instability in the shoulder during a game and this can result to an injury to the rotator cuff. There are exercises that focus on the rotator cuff where most require little or no special equipment.
Management
Early detection of the problem is the key when it comes to shoulder injuries caused by tennis. Application of ice, rest and compression are also recommended along with strengthening exercises to correct any muscle imbalances as well as improve flexibility. For serious cases, surgery might be required after a diagnosis is given.
Once the individual ends up with a shoulder injury, it is recommended to consult a doctor first so that the problem can be diagnosed correctly. Always remember that the main objective is to correct any issue before it becomes chronic or gets worse as well as continue with the sport without any pain.