Activity of the Rotator Cuff During Glenohumeral Mobilization

NCT02491489 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: RCEMG
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 20
• Locations: 0 countries
• Sites: N/A

Brief Summary

Shoulder pain is one of the most common musculoskeletal conditions treated by physical therapists. One common treatment is passive glenohumeral joint accessory mobilization, which is the application of a therapist generated force to move the humeral head (ball) on the glenoid (socket) of the shoulder to improve motion and decrease pain. It is generally accepted that these mobilizations do not elicit active muscular contractions of the surrounding musculature. However, there is very little literature to support this assumption, and a preliminary PubMed search utilizing the terms "shoulder"," mobilization", and "EMG" returned zero relevant references. Therefore, the investigators plan to utilize surface electromyography (EMG), a non-invasive assessment tool, to objectively measure the activity of the rotator cuff muscles (the muscles that surround the shoulder and provide stability to the joint) during various grades(levels of force and amplitude of movement) of glenohumeral mobilization ( a standard of care treatment). It is also unknown if subjects pain levels impact the level of rotator cuff activity. To investigate these questions, the investigators will collect EMG data while performing mobilizations on a total of 20 subjects, divided into two groups: 10 pain free shoulders and 10 painful shoulders. Data analysis will then include descriptive analysis, estimates of effect size, and analysis for between group differences. The investigators hypothesize that there will be significant differences in muscular activity between groups related to the presence of shoulder pain.

Conditions

Shoulder Pain

Keywords

Manual therapy

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• EMG activity of the rotator cuff using % reference voluntary contraction method

  EMG activity collected during the intervention will be compared to the baseline reference contractions.

  EMG data will be collected simultaneously during the intervention

Study Arms (2)

Painful shoulders

EXPERIMENTAL

Subjects with shoulder pain undergoing glenohumeral mobilization

Other: Glenohumeral mobilization

Normal shoulders

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Subjects without shoulder pain undergoing glenohumeral mobilization

Other: Glenohumeral mobilization

Interventions

Glenohumeral mobilization OTHER

Participants will then be placed supine on a standard plinth. The investigators will then proceed to provide a mobilizing force to the participant's glenohumeral joints. Each of two investigators will, in sequence perform a 15 second longitudinal distraction, followed by a 15 second posteriorly directed glenohumeral glide with the shoulder placed in the open pack resting position (\~50 degrees abduction, slight horizontal adduction, external rotation).

Normal shoulders; Painful shoulders

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 64 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• healthy individuals and subjects with shoulder pain
• ages 18-64
• all subjects must be ambulatory, able to transfer onto a standard treatment plinth, and able to tolerate lying supine (on their back) for a minimum of 15 minutes.

You may not qualify if:

• recent (6 months) shoulder surgery
• shoulder replacement on the involved side
• any history of shoulder fractures
• active cancer or metastatic disease
• coagulation disorders
• current pregnancy
• rheumatoid arthritis
• active litigation for current injury
• active workman's compensation for current injury
• osteoporosis

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Texas Woman's University: lead

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Shoulder Pain

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Arthralgia; Joint Diseases; Musculoskeletal Diseases; Pain; Neurologic Manifestations; Signs and Symptoms; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NON RANDOMIZED
• Masking: SINGLE
• Who Masked: OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: June 29, 2015
• First Posted: July 8, 2015
• Study Start: March 1, 2015
• Primary Completion: May 1, 2015
• Study Completion: May 1, 2015
• Last Updated: July 19, 2018

Record last verified: 2015-06