Shoulder Impingement Syndrome is a common condition that we treat all the time. When treating non traumatic shoulder impingement syndrome/shoulder pain, looking for the reason or areas in and around the shoulder that could be adding to the problem will help with healing the patient faster. One area that can contribute to shoulder dysfunction is the thoracic spine. Sitting in front of a computer all day can cause decreased mobility in the neck and upper back. If theses areas aren’t working correctly they can cause increased stress in other areas such as the shoulders.

In the study below the researches found improving thoracic spine mobility was beneficial in the treatment of shoulder impingement.

“It is beneficial to include treatment to increase thoracic spine mobility within shoulder impingement syndrome management.”

Meadows S, Smith G, Vaswani R. Physiotherapist survey: Increasing thoracic spine movement within the management of chronic subacromial impingement syndrome. Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies. 2020 Jan 1;24(1):93-9. Link