Shoulder injuries are a common complaint, affecting approximately 40 out of every 1,000 people each year. While the causes of shoulder pain and dysfunction vary, they all share one frustrating trait: they tend to heal slowly. In fact, many clinical guidelines published around the world recommend longer treatment durations for shoulder complaints compared to other soft tissue injuries. That raises the question—why does the shoulder take so long to recover?
The first reason is structural complexity. The shoulder isn’t just one joint; it’s four interconnected joints that make up what’s known as the shoulder girdle. These include the sternoclavicular joint,…
