Shoulder APTA (1) Flashcards
What kind of joint is the GH joint?
- triaxial synovial joint
What is the angle of inclination of the humerus?
- angle of the head relative to the humeral shaft
- 130*
What is considered “normal” alignment between the head of the humerus and the shaft in the transverse plane? What is the range of what can be normal?
- angled 30* posteriorly (retroversion)
- anywhere from -6.7 to 47.5* per one study
What is the orientation of the glenoid fossa relative to the scapula?
- slight lateral rotation (7*)
- slightly posteriorly oriented
- slight superior angulation (5*)
What type of tissue is the labrum made of?
- fibrocartilage
What two aspects of the labrum help improve stability for the GH joint?
- deepens the fossa
- creates intraarticular vacuum with the capsule which also helps stability
Where are the attachment points of the GH joint capsule?
- the glenoid neck and labrum
- anatomical neck of the humerus, except inferomedially where it extends a slight ways down the humeral neck
What are the two openings to the GH joint capsule?
- between the humeral tubercles, allowing the biceps tendon to exit the joint
- connection between the joint and the subscapularis bursa
Most extracapsular ligaments are where relative to the GH joint?
- superior and anterior
The superior GH ligament resists what motion, when the arm is in which position?
- restrains inferior translation
- when the arm is in an adducted position at the side
Tears or damage to the superior capsule may result in increased translation in which direction(s)?
- anterior and inferior
The middle GH ligament resists what motion, when the arm is in which position?
- anterior humeral translation when the arm is abducted up to ~45*
- external rotation when the arm is at the side
Describe the orientation and makeup of the inferior GH ligament.
- expansive band of tissue in the inferior capsule with thickened anterior and posterior portions
What is the general function of the inferior GH ligament?
- anterior and posterior bands work in conjunction to limit anterior translation when the GH joint is abducted to 90*
- during ER and abduction, the anterior band wraps around the front of the GH joint and limits anterior translation
- during IR, posterior band wraps around and limits posterior translation
How far from the vertebrae is the medial (vertebral) border of the scapula in a neutral position?
- ~5 cm
The scapula spans which levels of the thoracic spine?
- 2nd superiorly
- 7th inferiorly
The plane of the scapula is rotated ~ ___ to ___ from the coronal plane.
- ~30* to 45*
What is the neutral orientation of the scapula relative to vertical?
- 10-20* superiorly
- 10-20* anteriorly
The only skeletal articulation between the axial region and the appendicular upper limb occurs: ____
- at the sternoclavicular joint
The most important ligament at the SC joint is likely the _______. What movements does it limit?
- posterior sternoclavicular ligament
- limits anterior and posterior translations
What is thought to be the function of the interclavicular ligament?
- restrains inferior forces on the medial clavicle
T or F;
The disc in the AC joint becomes degenerated early in life.
- T
Describe the structure of the AC joint.
- synovial planar joint with 3 degrees of freedom
- has a joint capsule, and a disk/meniscus that isn’t well understood
What two ligaments add stability to the AC joint?
- Conoid
- coracoclavicular (trapezoid)
What happens to the cartilage in the AC joint during aging?
- the hyaline cartilage changes to fibrocartilage at ~17yo on the acromial side, and ~24yo on the clavicular side
What are the connections/orientations for the conoid and trapezoid ligaments?
- conoid runs vertically between the coracoid px and clavicle
- trapezoid (coracoclavicular) runs superior/lateral from the coracoid px and clavicle
What motion results from the restrictions of the AC ligaments?
- posterior rotation during clavicle elevation
What does “scapulohumeral rhythm” refer to?
- the 2:1 ratio of movement between the scapula and humerus
Describe the deltoid-rotator cuff force couple.
- During initial arm elevation, the deltoid creates a superiorly directed force, which is offset by the inferior/medial forces from the infraspinatus, teres minor, and subscapularis, as well as the compressive force from the supraspinatus
Describe the trapezius-serratus anterior force couple.
- serratus anterior and lower trap in conjunction with the upper trap and levator scap create upward rotation of the scapular with UE elevation
At what arm positions is the serratus anterior/lower trap most important for scapular rotation and stabilization?
- at ~ 90* abduction and greater elevation
What is a typical motor pattern for the scapular musculature with a patient with impingement syndrome?
- decreased SA activity
- delayed middle and lower trap firing
- upper trap/levator scap dominant pattern
Describe the anterior-posterior RC force couple.
- anterior based subscapularis
- posterior based teres minor and infraspinatus
- creates a concavity-compression, stabilizing the humeral head in the glenoid, most active in the mid-ranges of movement
T or F;
An isolated supraspinatus tear won’t impact the anterior-posterior RC force couple.
- T
What is the normal position of the dominant shoulder relative to the non-dominant?
- dominant will usually be significantly lower in neutral, non-stressed postural positions, especially with unilateral athletes (baseball, tennis)
- not clear why this happens. May be due to increased UE mass, or elongation of periscapular musculature due to eccentric loading
What is one recommended position to observe muscle atrophy during clinical examination?
- standing with hands on hips; brings shoulders into ~50* abduction and slight IR
- can see focal pockets of atrophy along scapular border, as well as over the infraspinatus fossa of scapula
What may cause excessive scalloping in the infraspinatus fossa due to atrophy?
- suprascapular nerve impingement
What shoulder condition can result in suprascapular nerve impingement?
- superior labral lesions
- can occur in the suprascapular notch and spinoglenoid notch with paralabral cyst formation
What is a method of assessing scapular dyskinesia during exam?
- Kibler scapular slide test
- assess at neutral and 90* positions; measuring from T-spine to inferior angle
- difference of more than 1 or 1.5 cm is considered abnormal
What are the 3 rotational and 2 translational movements that occur with scapular movement?
- upward/downward, IR/ER, anterior/posterior
- superior/inferior, protraction/retraction
Injury to which nerve results in a true pathological scapular winging?
- long thoracic nerve
What are the 3 scapular dysfunction classifications per Kibler?
- inferior angle
- medial border
- superior
When assessing for scapular dysfunction, what positions should the scapula be viewed in, and through what movements?
- resting in neutral and with hands on hips
- active in sagittal, scapular, and frontal planes
Describe inferior angle scapular dyskinesia per Kibler.
- prominent inferior angle due to anterior tipping in resting position
- most commonly seen in RC impingement, as the anterior tipping of the scapula puts the acromion in a more provocative position when the shoulder elevates
Describe medial border scapular dysfunction per Kibler.
- entire medial border is displaced posteriorly due to IR of the scapula in the transverse plane in resting position
- most commonly seen in pts with GH instability
Describe superior scapular dysfunction per Kibler.
- early and excessive superior scapular elevation during arm elevation
- typically due to RC weakness and force couple imbalances
What is the reliability of Kibler’s scapular assessments?
- 0.4 - 0.5 kappas. really not the most reliable
Is visual observation a valuable method for evaluating scapular dysfunction?
- loaded question. Yes, it does seem to be, but the methods could use some tightening up. Kibler’s classifications seem to be the most universally studied, but aren’t super specific or sensitive, although they’re not terrible either.
What are 3 more tests for assessing for scapular dysfunction?
- scapular assistance test
- scapular retraction test
- flip sign
Describe teh scapular retraction test.
- pt performs movement that was painful or unable without stabiliztion. Therapist stabilizes the scapula in retraction.
- if improved strength with stabilization, then treatment should focus on kinetic chain vs RC strength
Describe the scapular assistance test.
- AROM, then same movement with assist for scapular motion from therapist.
- positive if increased ROM or decreased pain with the assistance
Describe the scapular flip sign/test.
- resisted ER at 0* abd. Observe medial border of scapula. If it “flips” away from the thorax, it is considered positive.
What GH ROM is considered important to assess, and why?
- IR and ER
- Loss of IR due to posterior capsule tightness and increased anterior humeral head translation is an established relationship
What movement will occur with increased posterior capsule tightness?
- generally anterior-superior translation with arm movement, but can be posterior-superior with excessive tightness
What is a concern associated with posterior-inferior capsule tightness?
- has been found to increase subacromial contact with the rotator cuff
What two motions of the GH joint are associated with rotator cuff injury?
- anterior translation
- superior migration
What two interventions have been found to be appropriate for pts with posterior impingement and loss of IR?
- posterior shoulder stretching
- mobs of the GH joint
T or F;
It doesn’t make a difference if the scapula is stabilized or not when measuring GH IR.
- F;
- there is a lot of variability in IR measurements if the scapula isn’t stabilized.
T or F;
It’s adequate to assess GH AROM using functional/combined movements (e.g., Apley’s scratch test, etc).
- F;
- really need to use isolated movements in multiple planes to be able to identify ROM impairments
IR/ER should be measured at what shoulder position?
- 90* abduction
Kelley et al used EMG studies to determine optimal positions for shoulder MMT using what 4 criteria?
- maximal activation of the muscle
- minimal contribution of shoulder synergists
- minimal provocation of pain
- good test-retest reliability
Per Kelley, optimal positioning for supraspinatus MMT is: _____.
- 90* of scaption with neutral hand position; full can position; pt seated
- empty can position in scaption
- champagne toast position; 90* scaption, slight ER, and 30* elbow flx
What is the optimal positioning for infraspinatus MMT per Kelley?
- pt seated, 0* GH elevation, and 45* IR
What is an optimal position for teres minor MMT?
- 90* elevation in scaption w/ elbow bent to 90*
What is the optimal position for subscapularis muscle activation?
- essentially functional IR and then lift off
What general differences in RC strength have been found between dominant and non-dominant arms with HHD?
- significantly greater IR strength in the dominant arm
- equivalent ER strength between dominant and non-dominant arms
What tests are commonly used to clear the cervical spine during a shoulder eval?
- overpressure with flexion, extension, lateral flexion, and rotation
- quadrant or Spurling’s test (combined extension w/ ipsilateral lateral flexion/rotation)
What is the general specificity/sensitivity of Spurling’s?
- sensitivity: 30%
- specificity: 93%
- less of a screen, and more helpful to rule in a cervical radiculopathy