[princesslinda]

Has anyone here had any problems with "diabetic shoulder?" This is something i'm not familiar with.

I do have a herniated disc C5-6 level and occasionally have shoulder pain. This was diagnosed before my diabetes, but no surgery was suggested, as after taking NSAID's and muscle relaxers for a few weeks, the pain became managable and there was no nerve root impingement.

I do have frequent shoulder pain (nothing bad, just a tightness, achiness and some difficulty in range of motion). This usually resolves when i'm home on the weekends and not typing (which I do for about 10-12 hrs a day). Some well-meaning person at work mentioned diabetic shoulder and gave me something else to think about. I do have some arthritic changes in neck as well.

Anyone have any experiences to share?

[lgvincent]

I've never heard of any such thing but for the last year I've had intense pain in my right shoulder. It's so bad, I have a hard time doing something as simple as buttoning the sleeves of my shirts. The doctors here have been of no help with the problem.

[rzrbks]

This might help:

Results 1 - 10 of about 1,270,000 for diabetic shoulder

There are many ways that diabetes can affect the muscles and joints. Sugar sticks to the collagen in cells and affects its ability to function. Diabetes can damage blood vessels and a poor blood supply results in scarring and damage in the body's elastic tissues.
We know that some diabetic patients can have problems with changes in the gristle of their hands - and in men, the penis. Most experts think that frozen shoulder in diabetics arises for the same reasons
Diabetes is known to affect the shoulder in several ways. Frozen shoulder seems to be the commonest - with up to 20% of diabetic patients developing it at some time or other.

Calcium spots in the tendons and muscle around the shoulder are also seen more commonly in diabetic patients - this probably relates to the fact that high blood sugars can impair blood flow through small vessels. Tendons are particularly vulnerable to this and respond by depositing calcium. These calcium deposits can sometimes be painless but often cause severe discomfort or limited movement. They usually show up on x-rays.

Diabetes Monitor - frozen shoulder and diabetes

[Cyborg]

Ahhh, frozen shoulder. My constant reminder that I have diabetes... Went through therapy with some results, but I don't ever think it will be 100%. Stretch, stretch, then stretch some more. Remember, no pain, no gain. If you can't find a source of good stretches, I can probably find my sheet and scan it. Good luck.

[moorejames]

I've had a bad shoulder for awhile now and it didn't occur to me until a few weeks ago that it might be related to the diabetes. I'm planning on talking to the endo about at my next appointment. So far, nothing seems to help it. Some days are worse than others.

[sweetcheeks]

Originally Posted by moorejames

I've had a bad shoulder for awhile now and it didn't occur to me until a few weeks ago that it might be related to the diabetes. I'm planning on talking to the endo about at my next appointment. So far, nothing seems to help it. Some days are worse than others.

you know.... hmmm come to think about it, after i was diagnosed.. about 12/10/06 i woke up one morning with the god awlfulest pain in my shoulder....

i went to the doc on 12/12 for check up, and she says "go to chiropractor" which ive never been cause i dont believe it has to do with that... i actually feel something in there some times not all the time, like a pinched nerve... when im at home it doesnt hurt so much as it does sitting at my computer desk for 8 hours..

[moorejames]

<< actually feel something in there some times not all the time, like a pinched nerve...

My varies from feeling like a tighness, to more like a pinched nerve to sometime feeling like someone's driving an icepick up under my shoulder blade.

I've been to therapy, chiro, you name it. Had xrays on it, nothing. They always start out thinking it's a rotator cuff problem, but my range of motion and inability to "cause" the pain by certain movements (plus a clean xray) always seems to rule it out.

[sweetcheeks]

so there's basically no drugs etc.... that can help this, is that what your saying

[Cyborg]

If it's true frozen shoulder, there are things they can do to help. Manipulation of the shoulder under anesthesia can be done. I went to an orthopedic specialist that happened to be a diabetic himself, but only went through the physical therapy.

[princesslinda]

Thanks for the feedback guys! Cy, i'll look into finding some info on stretches.

[Gangrel]

I had frozen shoulder as well. Psyshio and lotttsss of time got rid of it. Probably almost a year and it was gone (though i only went to therapy for 6 months then quit)

I lost a lot of range of motion, and if anything impacted my arm, like catching a basketball, I could have such great pain I couldn't move my arm for a minute or two.

I finally went to my doctor and got him to refer me to p.therapy, no endo involved.

[moorejames]

Originally Posted by sweetcheeks

so there's basically no drugs etc.... that can help this, is that what your saying

Nah, I'm sure there's things that can help, I just gave up on pursuing it. Actually, plain old-fashioned ice packs seemed to help more than anything else. I was using heat, but that only seemed to make it worse (which makes sense actually, if it's a chronic inflamation thing, ice will help more than heat).

Actually, I took Vioxx for a month (shortly before it was pulled from the market) and it worked wonderfully.... Thankfully, the insurance company was up to date with the research and refused to renew that prescription!

[Cyborg]

Some meds can help with the inflamation, but the actual cause is not dealt with by meds. The problem is that the shoulder actually gets pulled into the shoulder socket and that is the cause of the pain and discomfort. Stretching helps to break the adhesions that are causing the shoulder to tighten up.

[shaza]

I really appreciate what I learned from this thread!

In the last couple weeks I've been experiencing pain in my right shoulder (I'm left-handed, so this matches the profile for diabetic shoulder). It was really bad at night, it was affecting my sleeping, and I was starting to have real problems with mobility.

Then I was diagnosed with T2 and I found this forum and I found this thread and I realized what was going on. It never even occurred to me to mention this symptom to my dr. So, after reading these posts I've been stretching the shoulder frequently. I've also changed my diet quite aggressively and I'm walking every day and, of course, drinking lots of water. I also take MSM, which may or may not be helping, but the shoulder is now (just a few days later) almost pain free. Without any meds or pain killers whatsoever. (Unless you count the MSM, which I've been taking since Christmas.)

Thanks, everyone!!!

Sharon
(My last A1c was 12.2, but next one will be much better, just based on my ever-lowering bg readings.)

[princesslinda]

What's MSM?