Rotator cuff injuries in overhead sports

As the main cause of shoulder pain, rotator cuff injuries are prevalent in diverse overhead sports, such as tennis, throwing, baseball, and swimming. Older players are more susceptible to rotator cuff injuries than young individuals. Multiple factors including the internal impingement and abnormal kinematics tend to induce rotator cuff injuries. Among the four rotator cuff muscles, supraspinatus is the most frequently injured. Pathology of the rotator cuff injury may be either mild inflammation or partial to full thickness tear. The overhead athletes’ performance in sports is largely decreased when suffering from rotator cuff tears. It is important to conduct early recognition and treatment to help athletes return to sports safely. Significant complications, prolonged disability, and further injuries are easily to occur when failing to adopt a proper management strategy. Both the non-surgical and surgical treatment requires proper rehabilitation protocols based on the patients’ conditions. In this paper, we will discuss the injury mechanics in various sports, clinical evaluation, treatment principles, and rehabilitation of rotator cuff injuries.