Medical Causes of Shoulder Pain

This chapter reviews sources of shoulder pain that are not directly due to shoulder-mediated pathology as well as their clinical presentations, diagnostic approach, and management options. The most common source of referred shoulder pain is the cervical spine. This includes cervical radiculopathy, cervical spondylosis, and cervical stenosis among other conditions. Rheumatologic causes of shoulder pain, such as gout, lupus, and rheumatoid arthritis, can also lead to shoulder pain. Other medical conditions that can result in shoulder pain include cardiac sources like myocardial infarction, aortic aneurysms, and angina, as well as abdominal sources including gallstones, hepatic conditions, and splenic rupture. This chapter will describe medical causes of shoulder pain using a primarily systems-based approach.