Patrick DenardDirector Oregon Shoulder Fellowship at Oregon Shoulder Institute

Shoulder Weakness After a Fall? Get It Checked

21 Oct 2026 · 0 min

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In this brief medical advice segment, Patrick Denard emphasizes that a sudden loss of shoulder function after a fall accompanied by a popping sound strongly suggests a traumatic rotator cuff tear. He advises obtaining an MRI immediately rather than postponing imaging or starting therapy, because timely diagnosis is crucial. Denard also points out that traumatic rotator cuff tears follow a different timeline and clinical course compared to degenerative tears, underscoring the need for prompt, appropriate evaluation.

If you have a traumatic injury with sudden change in your overall function, that's a time to get an MRI right out of the gate because that's a really good indicator of a rotator cuff tear and you want to know immediately. You don't want to mess around with therapy. So the message here is a fall and a pop is a problem. Traumatic tears have a different clock than degenerative rotator cuff tears.