The immediate effects of mobilization with movement on shoulder range of motion and pain in patients with rotator cuff-related shoulder pain: A randomized controlled trial (Evolution Trial).
Sizhong Wang, Jiaxu Zeng, Ramakrishnan Mani and 2 others
PMID 39571379WHAT IT FOUND
For people with rotator cuff shoulder pain who respond to mobilization with movement, three sets of 10 repetitions improved pain-free abduction by 13.7 degrees versus sham.
One set made only a small, uncertain change. Pain intensity and maximum range did not improve.
Key findings
01The between-group difference in angular onset of pain from baseline to after three sets of 10 repetitions was 13.7 degrees.
02After one set of 10 repetitions, the between-group difference was 6.5 degrees, and the reported confidence interval included no difference.
03No improvements were observed in pain intensity, maximum shoulder range, pressure pain threshold, or mechanical temporal summation after the first or third set.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
Only people who responded positively to MWM at screening were included, so the results do not tell you what happens in patients who do not respond. The trial tested one session only, and only immediate or short-term outcomes; it did not test repeated sessions, exercise, advice, or MWM applied to other joints. Most participants had chronic shoulder pain (58 of 63), and the sample had low average psychological distress, so findings may not apply to acute shoulder pain or high distress. Only participants and the outcome assessor were blinded; therapists knew which intervention was given. Some data were missing: two sham participants refused intervention and dropped out, and several follow-up measures were incomplete. The sample size calculation aimed to detect a 14.5-degree difference, and the observed between-group difference after three sets was 13.7 degrees.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that MWM reduces shoulder pain or restores motion. In this trial, only the angle where pain began improved after three sets in people who responded to MWM; pain intensity, maximum range, and day-to-day pain did not improve.