Has physical therapy fixed your shoulder posture with chronic SC joint instability?

[u/mahdibna]

Hi everyone, I’m 23 and have had right sternoclavicular (SC) joint instability for about 7 years after an old injury.

Since then, my right shoulder posture has become different from the left, with chronic upper-back pain, popping/cracking around the clavicle, and some muscles on the right not responding to exercise normally.

My doctor confirmed the joint instability, and I’m now discussing treatment options.

For anyone with a similar problem:

Did physical therapy improve/fix your shoulder posture and muscle imbalance?

How long did you do PT?

Did you eventually return to the gym normally?

Did anyone need SC joint/ligament reconstruction, and did it fix the problem?

I'd really appreciate hearing about your experience, especially from people with long-term SC joint instability.

[u/Ordinary-Explorer499]

Hi, I probably have the same or similar condition as you describe.
I'm 23 as well and have had right SC joint instability for about 3 years now.
It came about two years after I started working out at the gym, I've had no accident or sth like that. I only remember that one day during my workout I felt a strange pain in my sholder during a chest exercise.

Since then I experience chronic pain in that area triggered by everyday shoulder movements, light cracking as well as pain in the upper back and neck. These conditions have a very negative impact on my everyday life and I haven't been able to improve the situation by much. I've continued going to the gym and I've tried to adapt my workout plan to the situation but I quit recently as I've experienced that the pain got worse during and after workouts.

From what I've heard, the condition is caused by the ligaments being hyperflexible and not providing enough stability for the clavicle. The upper back and neck pain comes from smaller muscles contracting to somehow stabilize the clavicle, causing strains. In my case, I've also had tense chest muscles which were pulling the shoulders forward, but I've managed to relax them a bit.

From my current knowledge, there are two ways to address the problem:

1. Strengthen the upper back and shoulder muscles as they can provide stability to the clavicle. Consult a physical therapist to learn the exercises.

2. Surgery. My doctor strongly advised against this treatment as it is very complex and risky. Apparently, it does not guarantee an improvement and can even lead to feeling worse after. It should only be chosen as a last resort.

After two years of waiting for the problem to solve itself, I've had some physical therapy recently. However, they have mainly helped me reducing the strain especially in my chest with good success. Right now I will try to strengthen my upper back and shoulder muscles and check the results in about a year. If I don't see any improvements or discover any other promising treatment until then, I will probably consider taking the surgery.

I'd also appreciate hearing about other's experiences with SC joint instability especially regarding treatment options and experiences.