24 Aug Scapular Dyskinesia: What is it, how to fix it, and should I care?

In the musculoskeletal rehabilitative field, we often label different movement and postural pathologies with far-reaching garbage bag terms. Some examples include the upper or lower crossed syndromes, a "SICK" scapula, glenohumeral internal rotation deficit (GIRD), or the subject of this article, scapular dyskinesia. Now, garbage bag terms don't necessarily mean that these terms are inherently garbage. They often cast a wide net, capturing many musculoskeletal deficits, providing a general diagnosis for the patient and clinician to work from together. It's understandable why we use them: generally the patient appreciates having a name attached to the reason behind their pain. However, depending on the training and opinions of the clinician, these terms often receive criticism from those in the healthcare field. Are movement and postural pathologies legitimate? For example, is scapular dyskinesia a medical diagnosis or simply a descriptive term to capture aberrant scapular mechanics? More importantly, what is scapular dyskinesia and how do we define this? Is it truly possible to quantify scapular dyskinesia? And if it's truly present, does it actually contribute to shoulder pain -- and can we make a positive impact with a detailed physical therapy or rehabilitation program? If interested, read on: we're going to dive into these questions together here.