Rotator Cuff Tears & Tendinopathy

The rotator cuff is a group of four muscles – supraspinatus, infraspinatus, subscapularis and teres minor, that surround and stabilise the shoulder joint. Together they control how the ball of the shoulder joint moves within the socket, and they are responsible for generating and transmitting force through the shoulder during almost every overhead, pushing and pulling movement we perform.

Rotator cuff disorders account for more than half of all shoulder conditions, and represent one of the most common reasons people seek shoulder physiotherapy in Adelaide. The spectrum ranges from rotator cuff tendinopathy, where the tendon is overloaded and reactive but structurally intact, through to partial and full-thickness tears, where the tendon has been physically disrupted. Understanding where on that spectrum your condition sits is central to getting the management approach right.

Critically, the rotator cuff does not function in isolation. The muscles that control the shoulder blade, the scapular stabilisers, and the mobility of the thoracic spine play a direct role in how much load the rotator cuff is placed under during movement. At The MSK Studio in Adelaide, every rotator cuff assessment includes evaluation of the cervical spine, thoracic spine and scapular control alongside the shoulder itself.