Adhesive capsulitis treatment

Adhesive capsulitis treatment with anti-inflammatories.

The mainstay of treatment is with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications (NSAIDs) and physical therapy. While this condition nearly always improves with this intervention, it can take as long as 12 to 18 months to see improvement. The physical therapy is intense and needs to be performed by the patient on a daily basis at home to be successful.

Adhesive capsulitis treatment with Therapy

If therapy is not successful, or if a patient is unable to tolerate therapy, a shoulder manipulation may be performed. Under anesthesia, the shoulder may be forcibly brought through a range of motion to release the scar tissue. Surgery to remove all the sticky scar tissue in the joint is usually done arthroscopically. Some surgeons may use repeated pain blocks after surgery to allow the patient to painlessly participate in physical therapy after surgery.

Modified 3-8-04
Information compiled from the National Institutes of Health