Shoulder pain can be a very restrictive and disabling condition. You don’t realise how much you use your shoulder for everyday tasks. Think about it, hanging out the washing, washing the car, lifting, pushing, pulling, general cleaning or any house task. Shoulder pain can restrict your activities of daily living as well as your sleep. How many of you sleep on your side? If you have pain in the shoulder, then by sleeping on it you could increase the pain which wakes you up throughout the night, which can also have a negative impact on your health. Shoulder pain is more common when you get older and can develop over time or appear suddenly depending on the cause. There are many causes of shoulder pain. Overuse of the shoulder, posture, lifting heavy objects, sports injuries and trauma such as falling are common causes

There are many types of shoulder pain. It is important to treat the problem before the condition progresses to what’s collectively known as frozen shoulder. Frozen shoulder...

The statistics

• High blood pressure (or hypertension) is the most common of all the conditions of the circulatory system. (ABS – Australian Health Survey 2011/12)

• In 2003, high blood pressure was the greatest attributor to the burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD) accounting for 42.1% of CVD’s total burden. (Australian Institute for Health and Welfare - The burden of disease and injury in Australia 2003)

• In 2011/12, 4.6 million Australians (32%) aged 18 years and over had high blood pressure (systolic or diastolic blood pressure is ≥140/90 mmHg or taking medication).

• Of these, more than two thirds (68%) had uncontrolled or unmanaged high blood pressure (not taking medication), representing 3.1 million adult Australians. (ABS – Australian Health Survey 2011/12)

• In 2011/12, men were more likely to have uncontrolled or unmanaged high blood pressure than women (23.6% vs. 19.5% respectively), while the proportion of Australians with uncontrolled or unmanaged high bloo...