first visit to the orthopedist

A few days before visiting the orthopedist, I did a little research into the shoulder to get an idea about what to expect. I tried memorizing the parts of the shoulder, learned the mnemonic for the rotator cuff muscles (SITS), and found some informative videos about the shoulder exam. The best were posted by bluetentorthop.

Finally, it was time to see the orthopedist. The doctor performed a very few tests, and declared with certainty that I had frozen shoulder. She prescribed an MRI to see if there was any underlying cause. That was scheduled for the following week.

I was disappointed because I had expected the whole battery of tests that I'd seen in the videos. In fact, she didn't even visually inspect the shoulder, something that was supposed to be part of every good exam, according to the videos I'd seen.

However, I was happy that she hadn't decided instantly that I had a rotator cuff tear, something that I had been a bit worried about. I didn't realize at the time how big a problem frozen shoulder is.