Shoulder Pain in Spanish

What it means

Shoulder pain is any pain in or around the shoulder joint. MedlinePlus describes the shoulder as the most movable joint in the human body; a group of four muscles and their tendons, called the rotator cuff, give the shoulder its wide range of motion. Swelling, damage, or bone changes around the rotator cuff can cause shoulder pain. Sometimes shoulder pain may be due to a problem in another area of the body, such as the neck or lungs, which is called referred pain. MedlinePlus also notes that sudden left shoulder pain can sometimes be a sign of a heart attack; emergency signs such as sudden pressure or crushing pain in the shoulder need urgent care (call 911 in the U.S.). In Spanish the term is dolor de hombro.

Spanish term: Dolor de hombro
Gender and article: masculine: el dolor de hombro
Pronunciation: doh-LOHR deh OHM-broh

Dolor de hombro is the title of the MedlinePlus en español encyclopedia article, whose text also writes dolor en el hombro. Both nouns are masculine: el dolor, el hombro. The joint is la articulación del hombro, and MedlinePlus en español names its three bones as la clavícula, el omóplato and el húmero. The rotator cuff is manguito rotador; a linked article title on the same page uses manguito de los rotadores.

Other words MedlinePlus en español uses with the term are hombro congelado (frozen shoulder), tendinitis, bursitis, dislocación del hombro (dislocation of the shoulder) and separación del hombro (shoulder separation). Referred pain is dolor referido, a heart attack is ataque cardíaco, and a physical therapist is fisioterapeuta. For a movement that may hurt, it writes levantar el brazo por encima de la cabeza, lifting the arm above the head.

Phrases for an appointment

What a patient or a clinician might say, in English and Spanish:

Who	English	Spanish
Patient	My left shoulder hurts when I lift my arm above my head.	Me duele el hombro izquierdo cuando levanto el brazo por encima de la cabeza.
Clinician	Did the pain start after a fall or an injury?	¿El dolor empezó después de una caída o una lesión?
Patient	No, it started little by little about a month ago.	No, empezó poco a poco hace más o menos un mes.
Clinician	Does it hurt when you are resting, or only when you move your shoulder?	¿Le duele en reposo o solo cuando mueve el hombro?
Patient	It hurts at night, and I cannot move my arm behind my back.	Me duele por la noche y no puedo mover el brazo detrás de la espalda.
Clinician	I am going to examine your shoulder and order an x-ray.	Voy a examinarle el hombro y a pedirle una radiografía.
Patient	Will I need physical therapy?	¿Voy a necesitar fisioterapia?
Clinician	If you have sudden pressure or crushing pain in your shoulder with shortness of breath, call 911.	Si siente una presión o un dolor aplastante repentino en el hombro con dificultad para respirar, llame al 911.

In 9 languages

Language	Term
English	Shoulder Pain
Spanish (Español)	Dolor de hombro
Chinese (中文)	肩痛
Korean (한국어)	어깨 통증
Vietnamese (Tiếng Việt)	Đau vai
Filipino (Tagalog)	Sakit sa balikat
Portuguese (Português)	Dor no ombro
Thai (ภาษาไทย)	อาการปวดไหล่
Japanese (日本語)	肩の痛み

Where you'll see it

chartintake formmedical recordtriage note

Related ICD-10-CM category

ICD-10-CM code: M75 → Shoulder lesions

Related terms

Your right to an interpreter in the United States

If English is not your primary language and you have difficulty communicating in English, you may need an interpreter or a translated document when you visit a doctor or dentist, go to the emergency room or pick up a prescription. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights states that two federal laws, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, require programs that receive its funding to provide language access services free of charge.

You can ask when you make the appointment or at the front desk: "I need an interpreter, please." «Necesito un intérprete, por favor.»

More terms: Bones, joints and muscles

All terms in this area: Bones, joints and muscles — Huesos, articulaciones y músculos

Sources

This page is a language reference. It is not medical advice.