Many conditions and types of injuries can cause shoulder or elbow pain. Click a link below to learn more about common shoulder and elbow conditions.

Arthritis

Bursitis

Cubital tunnel syndrome

Dislocated shoulder or elbow

Fractures

Frozen shoulder

Impingement syndrome

Ligament injuries

Osteoarthritis

Osteoporosis

Rheumatoid arthritis

Rotator cuff injuries

Shoulder instability

Sprains/strains

Tendonitis

Tennis elbow

Thoracic outlet syndrome

Arthritis is the wearing away of the protective tissue layer that covers the bone ends inside joints. This layer acts as a shock absorber. As it wears, the joint becomes achy, swollen and eventually deformed. Arthritis can occur at any age after an injury to a joint.

Bursitis is inflammation of bursae — small sacs located between bone and other moving structures such as muscles, skin or tendons. The bursa allows smooth gliding between these structures. Bursae are all over the body, but the ones closest to joints (hips, knees, shoulders, elbows) tend to become irritated more often. Bursitis is usually temporary and occurs mainly as result of overuse.

Cubital tunnel syndrome is a condition that affects the ulnar nerve that crosses your elbow through a passage called the cubital tunnel. The symptoms are very similar to the pain that comes from hitting your funny bone. Causes include trauma to the elbow, frequent bending, constant use of the elbow and constant direct pressure on the elbow.

Dislocated shoulder and elbow are common injuries. Shoulder dislocation occurs when the ball at the top of the upper armbone (humerus) comes partway or all the way out of the socket. Both partial and complete dislocation cause pain and unsteadiness in your shoulder. Your muscles may spasm from the disruption, and this can make it hurt more. When your shoulder dislocates time and again, you have shoulder instability. A dislocated elbow occurs when the bones in the elbow are pulled apart, causing the ligaments that keep the bones together to stretch or tear. Most elbow dislocations are caused by falling on an outstretched hand.

Fractures are breaks in bones. Broken bones can result from falls, accidents or traumatic injuries. Severe breaks may require surgery to repair. However, most fractures are treated by immobilizing broken bones in casts or splints until they have grown back together.

Frozen shoulder, also called adhesive capsulitis, is a painful condition characterized by severe loss of motion in the shoulder. It may follow an injury to the shoulder, but can also arise with no warning or prior injury.

Impingement syndrome is painful irritation of the tendons and/or fluid sac (bursa) attached to the rotator cuff in the shoulder. The tendons and bursa rub against one another whenever you raise your arms over your head. But continuous overhead or repetitive shoulder movements, such as throwing, can cause irritation and pain that doesn’t go away.

Ligament injuries are common in athletes and active people. Ligaments on either side of a bone can be strained or torn by overuse or by a fall or traumatic injury. Sometimes a "snap" or "pop" is heard and the joint attached to the ligament feels loose or wobbly.

Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis ( Osteo is Greek for bone; arthritis means joint inflammation.) Osteoarthritis (OA) is an inevitable part of aging and can affect any joint. It usualy develops after age 45; about half of men and women over age 65 have it to some degree. OA is caused in part by wear and tear on a joint over time. It develops as cartilage – smooth tissue that cushions bones and keeps them from rubbing against each other – breaks down. This leads to joints becoming painful, warm to the touch, reddened and swollen. When the cushioning system of the joint is lost, the bones may grind painfully against each other. The joint can begin to stiffen, and movment is impaired. OA typically strikes the weight-bearing joints (knees, hips, back, feet); hands; and spine. The knee is the most commonly affected joint.

Osteoporosis (brittle bones) is a condition in which bones lose calcium, causing them to become fragile and more likely to break. If left untreated, osteoporosis can progress painlessly until a bone does break, such as a hip, spine or wrist or rib. This disease affects more women than men; 80 percent of those with osteoporosis are female. You may be at increased risk for osteoporosis if you have a family history of brittle bones; suffer from autoimmune disorders such as diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis or asthma; are extrmemly thin; or are a postmenopausal woman or a man with low testosterone levels. Children with such conditions as cystic fibrosis, celiac disease and inflammatory bowel disease are also at increased risk of osteoporosis because they can not absorb nutrients such as calcium properly. There are steps you can take to help prevent osteoporosis. These steps include getting enough calcium in your diet or through supplements, as well as Vitamin D to ensure your body absorbs the calcium. Getting regular exercise, especially weight-bearing or resistance exercise, builds stronger, denser bones. Avoiding smoking and heavy drinking can also improve bone health. Long-term use of some medicines (cortcosteroids, anticonvulsants) can speed up bone loss.

Osteonecrosis (bone death) is what happens when a segment of bone within the joint suddenly loses its blood supply and ‘dies.’ This condition usually affects older patients; the cause is not always known but high-dose steroid treatments for other medical conditions can cause osteonecrosis.

Rheumatoid arthritis is a form of arthritis in which excessive inflammation wears away the protective tissue between joints.

This MRI shows a torn rotator cuff in someone’s shoulder. The light bands around the top of the shoulder bone (see arrow) should be connected. The dark space in between the light bands is the tear.

Rotator cuff injuries are the most common cause of shoulder pain in adults over 30. The rotator cuff is a set of four ligaments that brace the shoulder, where the top of the upper arm bone (humerus) and the shoulder blade (scapula) meet. A typical experience is that of a patient in middle age who has tendonitis or bursitis, then lifts a load or suffers an injury that tears the rotator cuff. Because rotator cuff tendons have a very low blood supply, they do not repair themselves quickly and are very vulnerable to degeneration as we age. Degeneration can be sped up by repeating the same types of shoulder movements again and again.

Shoulder instability is a condition in which the shoulder joint is too loose and can slide around too much in the socket. Most of the time, an injury causes the shoulder to become unstable. In some cases, the unstable shoulder can actually slip out of the socket. If the shoulder slips completely out of the socket, it has become dislocated. If not treated, instability can lead to arthritis of the shoulder joint.

Sprains/strains are two different injuries, although both are the result of forcing a joint past its normal range of motion. Sprains occur when ligaments that connect bone to bone are overstretched, resulting in swelling, pain and even bruising. Jammed fingers, twisted knees, and twisted ankles are common examples of sprains. Strains, also called muscle pulls, refer to an overstretching of a muscle or tendon that causes the muscle to actually tear. Strains usually occur when a muscle is stretched too fast.

Tendonitis is inflammation or irritation of a tendon. Tendons are the thick fibrous cords that attach muscles to bones. They transmit the power generated by a muscle contraction to move bones. Tendonitis is usually temporary and occurs mainly as result of overuse.

Tennis elbow is inflammation of the muscles of the forearm, or of forearm tendons. Commonly experienced by tennis players, it can be caused by overuse or a constant pull of the lower arm muscles.

Thoracic outlet syndrome is a rare condition that occurs when vessels or nerves in your collarbone are compressed, sometimes by an extra rib. This condition causes pain the neck or shoulder, numbness or tingling in the fingers and weakened grip.

Reviewed for clinical accuracy by Jonathan C. Hersh, MD.