If you have a problem with your shoulder, you might need to wear a brace. Read this article to find the list of the best shoulder braces and basic information about them.
When suffering from shoulder pain, you might want to use a brace.
This cost-effective non-invasive treatment is easy to use and can provide you with quick relief After consulting with a doctor to make sure you indeed need it, it is beneficial for you to know how to choose a brace that meets your personalized needs..
In this article, you’ll find basic information about shoulder braces and a list of the ten best brands.
Why You May Need a Shoulder Brace
A shoulder brace can help you in the following cases:
- You’ve gotten an injury and now your shoulder needs support and stability to heal properly
- Your postural habits lead to pain and you need to correct them
- You have joint inflammation
- You need to improve your blood flow by keeping your shoulder elevated
If you meet one of these criteria, you shouldn’t buy any random brace. First, you should find a doctor and ask them to diagnose the source of your pain.
Depending on what exactly has happened to you, you might need a brace with specific characteristics — these are just a few examples.
- A posture support device that can help you prevent pain from incorrect posture
- A simple sling to keep your shoulder immobile
- A brace that enables you to adjust its temperature for hot or cold therapy
- A shoulder stabilizer that allows you to exercise
The more severe your injury, the more likely you’ll need to wear an immobilizing brace. If you have a mild case of arthritis, the doctor might recommend a brace that has more mobility.
Who Is at Risk for Shoulder Pain?
These three factors are responsible for higher risks.
- Age: The older you are, the more prone you become to arthritis. People over the age of 40 are more prone to rotator cuff injuries than younger individuals.
- Activity level: If you lead a sedentary lifestyle, you’re at risk. But if you’re a professional athlete or exercise in highly repetitive sports, you’re at risk too.
- Tradesmen: House painters and carpenters are likely to experience shoulder issues.
The shoulder girdle is a rather complex component of the human body. It moves freely as long as we’re young, but starts to degenerate over time.
Top 10 Shoulder Braces
This is an impartial rating of shoulder braces by both doctors and their patients. They are ergonomic, durable, and help to get rid of health problems in the shortest possible time.
They are made of high-quality materials,offer an excellent value for your money, and they fit different body sizes as they are customizable.
It should be easy for you to take them on and off without help from a third-party.
- DonJoy UltraSling III
- Aircast Arm Immobilizer
- Shoulder Abduction With Pillow Brace from Brace Express
- Ergonomic Arm Sling With Split Strap Technology from Custom SLR
- Vive universal shoulder brace
- EVS Sports shoulder brace
- Shoulder Stability Brace with Pressure Pad by Babo Care
- Hot/Cold & Compression Shoulder Support by NatraCure
- Shoulder Support Brace & Rotator Cuff Compression Sleeve by VOELUX
- 1ComfyMed Posture Corrector
The most important characteristics of a shoulder brace are support, comfort and discretion. To provide good support in the right places, a shoulder brace should have well-placed straps and a snug fit.
The less your shoulder joint sags, the better.Ideally also, the brace should be able to hide under your clothes, so it is better to avoid bulkier options if you are able.
What Are the Alternatives to Wearing a Shoulder Brace?
The best alternative to wearing a shoulder brace is prevention. To prevent rotator cuff injuries, you should practice good fitness and vary your physical routine to include activities that don’t stress the shoulder too much.
To support the work of the ligaments and tendons, you should carry out daily strengthening and flexibility exercises for the muscles of your back.
When you need to perform repetitive activities, you should take regular breaks to keep inflammation at bay.
Also, you need to have proper rest. The more activity there is in the joint, the higher the risks of a serious injury.
However, “proper” rest is not synonymous with “long”. Too much time off might result in the thickening of tissue in the shoulder, leading to a frozen shoulder.
If you have failed to avoid problems with your shoulder, you might need to resort to physical therapy. Your goal will be to increase your shoulder’s range of motion and stop the pain.
A medical professional will help you to restore safe movement in the shoulder through guided stretching and strengthening.
The doctor might prescribe you over-the-counter non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen to cope with pain and swelling.
For the initial stage of injury, you might receive a prescription. But normally, low doses of NSAIDs should be enough to cure minor issues.
If NSAIDs fail to bring relief, you might need to have shoulder injections. Steroids should be able to cope even with intense pain and swelling.
However, you shouldn’t get injections too frequently because they might result in weaker tendons in the shoulder.
Most likely, your doctor will recommend you to do them alongside physical therapy.
If you combine these two treatment methods, you’ll be able to reduce your pain at its source and mitigate it during the strengthening exercises.
The most extreme measure that you might need to fix your shoulder problems is surgery. You should consider it only if you’ve tried all the other alternatives and they have failed.
Depending on your diagnosis, you might need one of the following types of surgery.
- Arthroscopic tendon repair
- Open tendon repair
- Bone spur removal
- Tendon transfer
- Shoulder replacement
The doctor will determine whether you indeed need surgery after analyzing the location and severity of your injury.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully, this article came in handy and now you have a better understanding on why you might need a shoulder brace. It’s the easiest, safest and most affordable way of fixing your shoulder problems. The list of high-quality shoulder braces in this article should serve as a reliable guide for your purchase.
