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Shoulder Anatomy, Disorders, and Exercises

This article will help you to identify some of the most common causes of shoulder pain with tips to help prevent and resolve these potentially disabling conditions.

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Shoulder Anatomy

The shoulder joint is essentially formed by two large bones, the arm bone or “humerus” and the shoulder blade or “scapula.” The upper portion of your humerus has a large ball shape which sits in a shallow cup of the scapula. A strong cartilaginous ring known as the “labrum” helps to stabilize this union of the two bones.

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For additional support a web of tight fibrous bands called “ligaments” form a capsule around the joint. Around that capsule, we have a thick cuff, essentially compromised of four muscles, aptly named the “rotator cuff” (commonly mispronounced as “rotary cuff, or cup”). The rotator cuff muscles all originate on the shoulder blade and attach at the upper arm, allowing you to rotate your arm in all directions.

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To decrease friction caused with rotation you have several strategically placed “bursae” throughout the shoulder. A bursae is a small fluid filled sac – imagine a balloon with just a small amount of water inside – that allows these structures in high friction areas to glide past one another.

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One other muscle that should be discussed here is the biceps muscle. The biceps muscle sits on the front part of the upper arm, and has a deep tendonous attachment to the front part of your shoulder blade.

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When someone speaks of a shoulder problem, it is likely that they have had injury to one or more of the above mentioned structures. A short discussion follows…

Common Shoulder Disorders

Shoulder Impingement