Duration of bursitis | Bursitis of the shoulder

Duration of bursitis

The duration of the bursitis is strongly dependent on the extent of the damage in the tissue and the time of diagnosis and treatment. The most important basis for treatment is the earliest possible intervention.If only slight, beginning pain is followed by immediate rest from sport and exercise, the slight inflammation can heal within about 2 weeks. The pain can subside after a few days of rest.

Severe pain and inflammation can be accompanied by a long period of illness and uncertain prognosis. Sometimes the inflammation can be so severe and persistent that healing by itself cannot be expected. Conservative treatments can be unsuccessful for months, so that surgery may be necessary.

The duration of incapacity to work depends on the extent and prognosis of the individual illness, but also on the type of profession. Optimal therapy includes early and sufficient protection of the shoulder. Therefore, in case of slight, beginning pain, an incapacity to work should be generously issued.

Severe inflammation without therapy success can otherwise lead to months of absence. Depending on the profession, even long-term incapacity to work can occur. Heavy physical work involving lifting may not be possible under certain circumstances. Office work, on the other hand, can be resumed shortly after pain relief if there is no strain on the shoulder.

Prognosis

The prognosis for an early treated bursitis of the shoulder is quite good. It is important that the bursitis is treated early. Early treatment increases the good prognosis, since no attempt is made to learn pathological movement patterns to avoid pain.

The further the inflammation progresses untreated, the higher the risk of complications. Fortunately, complications occur quite rarely with adequate treatment. Complications in this type of disease can include stiffening of the joint or a decline in shoulder muscles.

However, this muscular decline only occurs after a longer period of immobilization. The long-term prognosis for recurrent bursitis of the shoulder is somewhat different. Although the individual inflammations can always be controlled well with drug therapy, drug therapy can cause side effects in the long run.

For this reason, patients can consider surgery to remove the bursa in consultation with their treating physician. However, this step should only be considered if the pain is persistent. Exercise training, in which patients learn to avoid particularly stressful movements, also has a positive effect. With chronic bursitis of the shoulder as a concomitant of another chronic disease such as rheumatoid arthritis, the prognosis depends very much on the course of the underlying chronic disease. Although the pain can be treated, the basic problem of a permanently irritated bursa remains in the long term.