Shoulder Impingement Syndrome

Excerpt

Shoulder pain is a common reason for visits to primary care and orthopedic clinics worldwide. The estimated prevalence of shoulder complaints ranges from 7% to 34%, with shoulder impingement syndrome historically considered the most frequent underlying etiology. Subacromial impingement has been reported to account for approximately 44% to 65% of all shoulder complaints. In the United Kingdom, 20% to 50% of people presenting to general clinicians with shoulder pain ultimately seek treatment, and roughly one-quarter of these individuals are diagnosed with shoulder impingement syndrome. In a cohort, 54% of patients with shoulder pain reported persistent symptoms at 3 years. Contemporary literature has shifted away from viewing impingement as a single pathoanatomic diagnosis toward understanding it as a clinical syndrome or cluster of symptoms often overlapping with rotator cuff–related shoulder pain.