Frozen Shoulder: Stages, Treatment & Recovery Timeline

By Dashvanth Healthcare Medical Team · Reviewed by our specialists · East Delhi

What Is Frozen Shoulder?

Frozen shoulder (adhesive capsulitis) is a condition causing pain and progressive stiffness of the shoulder joint. The joint capsule thickens and tightens, severely restricting movement. It affects 2–5% of adults, more commonly women aged 40–60.

Three Stages

• Freezing (2–9 months): Gradually worsening pain; all movements become painful; sleep disturbed by lying on the affected side.
• Frozen (4–12 months): Pain starts to ease but stiffness is most severe; significant limitation in reaching, dressing, and overhead activity.
• Thawing (5–24 months): Gradual return of movement; most patients recover, though some retain mild restriction.

Treatment Options

Conservative

• NSAIDs and gentle range-of-motion exercises
• Corticosteroid injections — most effective in the freezing stage, reduce pain and speed recovery
• Physiotherapy: pendulum exercises, passive stretching, heat therapy

Interventional / Surgical

• Hydrodilatation: distension of the joint capsule with saline under image guidance
• Arthroscopic capsular release: keyhole surgery dividing the tight capsule; dramatically accelerates recovery in resistant cases