Can Frozen Shoulder Return After Treatment?

Can frozen shoulder return or come back after treatment? It depends on the treatment and whether or not you have underlying conditions which contribute to the development of frozen shoulder.

Can Frozen Shoulder Return or Come Back After the MCD Procedure?

After the MCD Procedure, it is extremely unlikely that your frozen shoulder will return or come back in the same shoulder. In the past 15 years that Dr. Oolo-Austin has been performing MCD’s, only 2 patients came back to us with frozen shoulder in the same shoulder. (One had injured himself playing hockey a week after the MCD procedure and the other did not do their prescribed rehabilitation exercises.) Frozen shoulder is a condition that very rarely reoccurs in the same shoulder after it has been effectively treated.

But in the case of diabetics or people who have other underlying conditions that contribute to the development of frozen shoulder, there is very high possibility of developing frozen shoulder in the other shoulder. (20-50%!)

The World Frozen Shoulder Clinics prescribe a carefully designed rehabilitation exercise regimen for patients who have undergone the MCD Procedure. These exercises are designed to prevent the frozen shoulder adhesions from re-amalgamating. In other words, the exercises prevent the shoulder from freezing up again after the MCD Procedure. Additionally, the exercises serve to strengthen the muscles and ligaments which have atrophied and have gone through degenerative changes as result of underuse and immobility.

Patients have contacted us after three months, six months, and even after a year to let us know how well they are doing.

Does Frozen Shoulder Return After Other Treatments? “Will my frozen shoulder come back?”

Other treatments for frozen shoulder include physiotherapy, active release technique, cortisone injections, hydrodilatation, manipulation under anesthesia (MUA,) and surgery (arthroscopic release.) Whether or not frozen shoulder returns depends on the treatment. Too many doctors advise their patients to wear slings after MUA or surgery. This kind of immobilization is the exact opposite of what patients should do after their shoulder joint capsules have been opened. Patients need to keep their arm and shoulder moving lest the shoulder freeze up again. After surgery, patients must undergo months of painful rehabilitation. If they do not follow their rehab regimen completely, the chance of the shoulder freezing up again is higher. This is true of MUA as well.

With any results attained from receiving treatments such as physiotherapy and active release technique (ART), it’s not evidently clear if the frozen shoulder goes away on its own or as a result of the treatments. These treatments are conservative and are given over a long period of time. Regardless, when a frozen shoulder has run its course and has gone away on its own, it is extremely unlikely for the frozen shoulder to return.

Cortisone injections can provide temporary pain relief and slight improvements in mobility for usually 1-2 weeks. This can make a frozen shoulder sufferer think that their frozen shoulder has been fixed or resolved. But then after the cortisone has worn off and the pain comes back, the person thinks that the frozen shoulder has come back. In actuality, the frozen shoulder wasn’t resolved at all and hadn’t gone anywhere.

In conclusion, rest assured that the chance that your frozen shoulder will return or come back is extremely low—even lower if you undergo the MCD Procedure. Let us know in the comments what treatments you’ve tried for your frozen shoulder and how they’ve worked for you! We’re conducting an informal survey and the more information, the better!

And if you want more information about the MCD Procedure, or if you’d like to speak with one of our past patients, get a FREE phone consultation by clicking below. You’ll speak with an educational director who can arrange something for you!

Categorised in: Blog - World Frozen Shoulder Clinic