Shoulder Pain on Po-Wei Chen, MD — Physiatrist & Builder

Shoulder Pain on Po-Wei Chen, MD — Physiatrist & Builderhttps://drpwchen.com/en/tags/shoulder-pain/Recent content in Shoulder Pain on Po-Wei Chen, MD — Physiatrist & BuilderPo-Wei Chen, MD — Physiatrist & Builderhttps://drpwchen.com/og-default.pnghttps://drpwchen.com/og-default.pngHugoenWed, 28 Oct 2026 06:55:00 +0800Shoulder impingement (now mostly called subacromial pain syndrome): it hurts when you lift your arm, so start with the right exercise, not surgeryhttps://drpwchen.com/en/notes/shoulder-impingement/Wed, 28 Oct 2026 06:45:00 +0800https://drpwchen.com/en/notes/shoulder-impingement/Shoulder impingement, now mostly called subacromial pain syndrome, is pain on the outside of the shoulder when you lift your arm halfway, put on a jacket or reach for a high shelf. This note first explains why the name changed (the old idea that bone pinches the tendon is not supported by current evidence), then covers how it is assessed today, why education and exercise are the core of treatment, why a steroid injection is only a short-term rescue, and why decompression surgery did not beat sham surgery in placebo-controlled trials.