Both individuals and society experience serious consequences of work disability associated with workrelated musculoskeletal disorders. Shoulder pain is common in overhead workers, often requiring them to seek help from medical professionals. Return to work after shoulder rehabilitation is not always successfull and recurrence of shoulder pain at work can occur when professional activities (again loading […]
Although rotator cuff disorders are very common (about 70% of all patients with shoulder pain), the clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of physiotherapy interventions is still unclear, mainly due to the fact that most trials are small sample size short term studies. Therefore the aim of the GRASP-trail was to investigate in a randomized trial the […]
This was the question the Master students Rehabilitation Sciences and Physiotherapy from Ghent University Léonie Lejon, Yao Lin, and Silke Schotte wanted to answer with their project. The covid pandemic has forced us to examine, treat and guide patients with shoulder pain through internet communication as an alternative for the usual care in vivo. Many […]
Manipulation under anaesthesia, arthroscopic capsular release, or early structured physiotherapy? Frozen shoulder is a condition of the shoulder joint in which the capsule becomes inflamed, then scarred and contracted, causing pain, stiffness, and loss of function. The exact cause remains unknown, which is why it is often labelled as idiopathic or primary frozen shoulder. Recently, […]
Return to work is a challenge in shoulder rehabilitation for patients participating in jobs with high requirements for the shoulder like for example construction workers, dentists or domestic helpers. From working with these patients I recognize three pitfalls related to exercise therapy, that might contribute (among other factors) to early failure of return to work […]
Conservative treatment is considered as the first-line treatment for partial-thickness rotator cuff tears (PTRCT) while surgical treatment is generally indicated in patients with failure of conservative treatment for 3-6 months and in younger patients with a traumatic tear. Although more research is needed concerning (the effectiveness) of conservative treatment management, it could be interesting for […]
The incidence of a traumatic shoulder dislocation is 23/100 000 persons/year with a recurrence rate from 26% up to 92%. Incidence of a first time traumatic anterior shoulder dislocation (FTASD) is higher in contact sports, and recurrence rate depends upon risk factors that may be modifiable (such as activity level) or non-modifiable (such as age […]
The hypermobility type of the Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and Hypermobility Spectrum Disorders By Valentien Spanhove, PT and PhD researcher @Ghent University Hypermobility disorders range from asymptomatic joint hypermobility, through Hypermobility Spectrum Disorders (HSD), to the hypermobility type of the Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS) (Malfait et al. AJMG 2017). While patients with hEDS are characterized by signs of […]
Frozen shoulder remains a somewhat mysterious pathology in which we, as empathic physiotherapists, want to take our magic wand and break down the ice cage of stiffness. But is our effort rewarded or do we head for a burnout if we see too much frozen shoulder patients a year? We summarize the results of the […]
Subacromial pain syndrome (SAPS) is the most common diagnosis for shoulder pain. Subacromail decompression, which is the removal of the subacromial bursa with some bone from the anteroinferior surface of the acromion is a common treatment option for SAPS in order to prevent impingement of the rotator cuff tendons. Although the decision of whether or […]
A study of Chester et al. (2019) identified predictors of for physiotherapy management of shoulder pain in 810 patients. They found that high levels of pain and disability at baseline were associated with high levels of pain and disability at 6 months follow-up, and that low levels of baseline pain and disability were associated with […]
Designing an optimal postoperative loading protocol for our patients with rotator cuff repair might be a challenge. Exercises are important in the early postoperative stages to improve range of motion (ROM) and motor performance of the shoulder, but it is important not to overload the repairing cuff. Exercise prescription could be based on known muscle […]
A new study of Warby et al. (2018, BJSM) compared 2 exercise programs of 12 weeks in patients with non-traumatic multidirectional instability. The effect on function and satisfaction (with questionnaires investigating instability, such as WOSI & MISS) and pain, muscle strength, scapular movement was investigated at 6, 12 and 24 weeks. Participants attended a weekly […]
Both surgical repair as conservative management may serve as treatment options for patients with full-thickness rotator cuff tears. It is important to know if conservative treatment has also a successful result in the long-term. Boorman et al. (2018, JSES) examined 5-year outcomes of patients with chronic full-thickness rotator cuff tears previously enrolled in a nonoperative, […]
Results and thoughts on “Exercise prescription for overhead athletes with shoulder pathology: a systematic review with best evidence synthesis.” (Wright et al., 2018) This interesting review summarizes the evidence on exercise prescription for overhead athletes with shoulder pathology. The authors included 6 level I-IV studies and 33 level V studies. They extracted a list of exercises […]
