What to document for Shoulder Injury
Organize disability evidence for range of motion, lifting, reaching, surgery, and therapy records.
| Evidence area | What makes the record more useful |
|---|---|
| Range Of Motion | Document range of motion with dates, source records, and a short explanation of why it matters to the current disability issue. |
| Lifting | Connect lifting to specific activities and work demands instead of using a conclusion without examples. |
| Reaching | Connect reaching to specific activities and work demands instead of using a conclusion without examples. |
| Surgery | Show the history of surgery, response, side effects, and whether the treatment changed day-to-day function. |
| Therapy Records | Show the history of therapy records, response, side effects, and whether the treatment changed day-to-day function. |
How Shoulder Injury affects work function
Describe function in concrete terms that match this condition and the person's actual work history. Useful records may address reliability, pace, attendance, safety, physical tolerance, communication, concentration, or adaptation depending on the symptoms documented in the file.
- Use examples from treatment records and daily activity rather than a diagnosis label alone.
- Identify how often a limitation occurs and how long recovery takes.
- Separate limitations caused by this condition from other impairments when the records allow it.
- Explain treatment gaps, side effects, or inconsistent findings instead of ignoring them.
SSA medical sources for Shoulder Injury
The Listing of Impairments is one part of disability evaluation. A claim can also turn on the combined medical record, residual functional capacity, past work, and other steps in Social Security's evaluation process.
Questions before an appeal or hearing
- Which range of motion records cover the period SSA is reviewing?
- Do the records explain lifting with enough detail to show frequency or severity?
- How does therapy records affect the claimant's past job duties or reliable attendance?
- What recent record has not yet been added to the disability file?