Adhesive Capsulitis After COVID-19 Vaccination: A Case Series

Area of Science:

• Immunology
• Vaccinology
• Rheumatology

Background:

• Adhesive capsulitis (frozen shoulder) is a common condition, but its association with COVID-19 vaccination is rarely reported.
• Shoulder Injury Related to Vaccine Administration (SIRVA) is a known, though infrequent, complication due to injection technique.

Purpose of the Study:

• To report cases of adhesive capsulitis following Covishield vaccination.
• To describe the clinical presentation, treatment, and hypothesized pathogenesis of vaccine-associated adhesive capsulitis.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective case series of nine patients diagnosed with adhesive capsulitis.
• Patients received intramuscular Covishield vaccine in the ipsilateral deltoid.
• Diagnostic criteria from the UK FROST Multicenter Study were applied.

Main Results:

• Nine patients (5 male, 4 female, mean age 48.7 years) developed adhesive capsulitis within one month of Covishield vaccination.
• Mean onset was 12.3 days post-vaccination, with a mean symptom duration of 9.4 weeks.
• Conventional treatment (NSAIDs, intra-articular steroids, nerve blocks) improved pain and range of motion within 8 weeks.

Conclusions:

• Adhesive capsulitis is an uncommon but potential complication of Covishield vaccination.
• The pathogenesis is unclear but may involve local inflammatory spread or secondary effects from SIRVA.
• Clinicians should consider this association, especially given the rarity in existing literature.