Rotator cuff tears do not heal well with time. They tend to either enlarge or, at best, stabilize in size. The good news is that rotator cuff tears do not necessarily need to heal in order for the symptoms to resolve.
Pain between the shoulder blades is often due to muscle strain, which may result from lifting heavy objects, poor posture, or overuse. Other health issues can cause upper back pain, though, including acid reflux, disc problems, gall bladder disorders, or even a heart attack. Different disorders will cause different types of pain.
Shoulder bursitis is inflammation of a bursa, a fluid-filled sac, in the shoulder joint. The bursa provides padding between bones, tendons, and ligaments to reduce friction and improve joint movement throughout the body. There are multiple bursae in the shoulder, but this condition most commonly affects one called the subacromial bursa.
Shoulder symptoms led to an average of 9.6 million physician visits in 2015 and 2016 in the United States. The most common cause of those shoulder symptoms? Rotator-cuff disorders. Nonoperative treatment, such as physical therapy, is the typical approach to treating rotator-cuff tears. However, surgery is considered in certain patients whose rotator-cuff tears don't resolve with nonoperative treatments.
"The main finding of the study was that astronauts who have been in spaceflight, especially the longer duration they have been in spaceflight, experience higher rates of shoulder injuries, particularly rotator cuff tears—even those that require surgery," said Dr. Adil Ahmed, corresponding author and assistant professor in the Joseph Barnhart Department of Orthopedic Surgery at Baylor.
