Ultrasonographic characteristics of the shoulder in patients with shoulder pain: A retrospective study comparing younger and older age groups

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Background Shoulder pain can be caused by structures within the shoulder joint or external structure to shoulder and the prevalence of shoulder pain is high. Objective The purpose was to investigate the ultrasonographic characteristics of patients with shoulder pain and to study the association between age groups (less than 60 years vs. 60 years and above) and commonly found abnormal ultrasonographic findings. Methods A retrospective study was conducted on 253 patients experiencing shoulder pain over a month. Data included gender, age, side of pain, pain duration, painful area, previous treatments, clinical assessment of shoulder pain. The abnormal findings in shoulder ultrasound images were reported, and the association between age group with common ultrasound abnormalities were analyzed using the chi-square test. Results Common abnormal ultrasound findings included subdeltoid bursitis (82.7%), biceps tendon effusion (48.7%), and supraspinatus tendinosis (44.2%). Moreover, patients aged 60 years and above had a significantly higher prevalence of biceps tendon effusion (53.6% vs 36.0%), supraspinatus tendon tear (19.3% vs 8.6%) and subscapularis tendon tear (6.1% vs 1.4%) compared to those aged less than 60 years. Conclusion The common abnormal ultrasound findings in patients with shoulder pain were subdeltoid bursitis, biceps tendon effusion and supraspinatus tendinosis. Patients aged 60 years and above had a significantly higher prevalence of biceps tendon effusion and tears in the supraspinatus and subscapularis tendons.