I developed very sore shoulders in 2003 a couple of months after being given Sulpiride, a neuroleptic.
I asked to see the physio at the GP and was referred on to the hospital physio.
The first report from the physio noted ‘lack of arm swing’ in my right arm . Nobody told me a thing about Parkinson’s. I had to find all that out for myself. I first starTEd ASKING my GP about parkinson’s in 2007 - concerned about rigidity/stiffness in right arm
At my last neurology appointment I told the doctor my neck was very stiff. No mention of that in report.
“What do you want out of this?” the young man who examined me said.
“Honesty” I said
The only doctor’s name on the report is that of the consultant who I have never met…
Frozen shoulder and other shoulder disturbances in Parkinson’s disease.D.Riley, A.E.Lang, R.D.Blair, A. Birnbaum, and B Reid J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 1989 Jan; 52(1): 63–66.
In a survey of 150 patients compared with 60 matched control subjects a significantly higher incidence of both a history of shoulder complaints (43% vs. 23%) and frozen shoulder (12.7% vs. 1.7%) was found in the Parkinson’s disease population. In at least 8% of the patients frozen shoulder was the first symptom of disease, occurring 0-2 years prior to the onset of more commonly recognised features.
Because Of these factors and the high correlation between the affected shoulder and the site of onset of Parkinson’s Disease (84% in the upper limb ipsilateral to the frozen shoulder), we feel that the occurrence of frozen shoulder in Parkinson’s Disease is related to the incipient development of akinesia in the ipsilateral arm.
Shoulder Pain in Parkinson’s Disease William Stamey, Joseph Jankovic BCM poster 2008
Parkinson’s disease and related disorders should be considered in patients presenting with shoulder pain, an early and important symptom of PD and parkinsonism.
Bilateral shoulder pain was present in 4 (11%) patients, and only 5 (14%) individuals experienced pain in the shoulder opposite to the side of maximum parkinsonian symptoms.
Among those PD patients with shoulder pain, 7 (20%) stated this was their presenting complaint.
Clinical Features Associated with Frozen Shoulder Syndrome in Parkinson’s Disease Ya-Ting Chang, Wen-Neng Chang, Nai-Wen Tsai, Kuei-Yueh Cheng, Chih-Cheng Huang, Chia-Te Kung, Yu-Jih Su, Wei-Che Lin, Ben-Chung Cheng, Chih-Min Su, Yi-Fang Chiang, and Cheng-Hsien Lu Parkinson’s Disease Vol. 2015 (2015), Article ID 232958, 7 pages
Frozen shoulder syndrome was found in 14 of 30 PD patients affecting 19 shoulders, including bilateral involvement in five and unilateral involvement in nine
Rigidity in Parkinson’s Disease as a Primary Symptom Impact and Treatment of Rigidity in Parkinson’s Disease P. McNamara, Updated July 25, 2017
Rigidity—when your muscles are stiff and resist moving—is one of the primary symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, affecting at least 90 percent of people with the disease at some point. It occurs when your muscles stiffen involuntarily.