Efficacy and Safety of Digital Therapeutics for Improving Shoulder Function After Rotator Cuff Repair

NCT07255534 | Recruiting DMC

• 2 other identifiers: SMC 2025-07-113-002RS-2024-00401350
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 70
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

1. 1.Importance of Rehabilitation After Rotator Cuff Repair Rotator cuff tears are among the most common shoulder conditions in Korea. They can occur naturally with aging or result from trauma or overuse. When conservative treatments like medication or injections fail to relieve pain and restore function, rotator cuff repair surgery is necessary. Postoperative rehabilitation exercises are crucial for recovering shoulder function, reducing pain, and returning to daily activities. Many studies have emphasized the importance of staged rehabilitation and patient education after surgery, showing that active patient participation directly affects recovery. However, some patients rely on unverified internet sources (such as YouTube or online forums) or face limitations such as time, geographical constraints, or cost even when receiving face-to-face therapy.
2. 2.Advantages of Digital Therapeutics Digital therapeutic devices have emerged as a promising solution to these challenges. These smartphone applications deliver exercise and educational content tailored to postoperative rehabilitation, aiming to improve the disease state. They offer anytime, anywhere access without time or location restrictions and provide evidence-based, systematic, and personalized rehabilitation programs. Comprehensive educational materials enhance patient understanding and promote self-management skills, potentially increasing rehabilitation adherence.
3. 3.Recent Research Findings Digital rehabilitation programs for patients after rotator cuff repair have demonstrated effectiveness. Programs that provide real-time exercise feedback using mobile apps and sensors have shown similar or superior outcomes compared to traditional physical therapy. Augmented reality (AR)-based rehab systems are more effective in improving shoulder function than conventional methods, and digital apps offering customized exercise videos significantly enhance physical function and confidence. Notably, patients using digital rehabilitation programs for 1 to 6 months exhibited improved adherence to therapeutic exercises, facilitating consistent home-based rehabilitation.
4. 4.Purpose of This Clinical Trial While previous studies have confirmed the efficacy and safety of digital therapeutic devices after rotator cuff surgery, most are limited to generic exercise programs. This clinical trial aims to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of a clinical trial digital therapeutic device not yet approved domestically, providing disease-specific exercise programs.

Conditions

Rotator Cuff Tear Arthropathy; Repair of a Cuff Tear

Keywords

Rotator Cuff Tear Arthropathy, repair of a cuff tear, digital therapeutics, rehabilitarion

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons score (ASES)

  domain : pain, function 1. Pain is measured using a Visual Analog Scale (VAS) rated out of 10 points and then converted to a 50-point scale. 2. Function is assessed through a questionnaire consisting of 10 items, each scored from 0 to 3, with a total raw score of 30. This total is converted to a 50-point scale. This results in a final combined score ranging from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating better shoulder function.

  baseline, 9-week, 15-week, 22-week, 46-week

Secondary Outcomes (9)

• Constant score

  baseline, 9-week, 22-week, 46-week

• Korean shoulder Score (KSS)

  baseline, 9-week, 22-week, 46-week

• Simple shoulder Test (SST)

  baseline, 9-week, 22-week, 46-week

• Shoulder pain (PVAS)

  baseline, 9-week, 15-week, 22-week, 46-week

• Shoulder joint range of motion (active)

  9-week, 15-week, 22-week, 46-week

Other Outcomes (6)

• Self-efficacy for exercise (SEE)

  baseline, 9-week, 15-week, 22-week, 46-week

• World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule (WHODAS 2.0)

  baseline, 9-week, 15-week, 22-week, 46-week

• (K-eHEALS)

  baseline

Study Arms (2)

Intrevention group (digital therapeutics)

EXPERIMENTAL

Other: digital therapeutics; Other: usual care

control group (usual care)

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Other: usual care

Interventions

digital therapeutics OTHER

After rotator cuff repair surgery, the patient performed prescribed rehabilitation exercises delivered through a personal mobile device

Intrevention group (digital therapeutics)

usual care OTHER

Before discharge and at the first postoperative visit (2 weeks after surgery), patients receive education based on a brochure covering rehabilitation exercises, surgical site care, and criteria for hospital visits in emergency situations. The brochure includes information on the duration of brace use, surgical site hygiene and care, precautions for arm use, and detailed rehabilitation exercise instructions. At follow-up visits around 8 and 20 weeks post-surgery, patients receive guidance on improving joint range of motion and muscle strengthening exercises. Physical therapy modalities such as cold and heat application and electrical stimulation are provided. Additional treatments, including corticosteroid injections combined with hyaluronic acid, may be administered based on the healthcare provider's clinical judgment.

Intrevention group (digital therapeutics); control group (usual care)

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 19 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Be an adult aged 19 or older.
• Have a diagnosis corresponding to Korean Standard Classification of Diseases codes M75.1 (rotator cuff tear) or S46.08 (other specified injuries of tendons and muscles at shoulder and upper arm), and have undergone rotator cuff repair (RCR) surgery, or RCR combined with procedures such as acromioplasty, biceps tenotomy, fixation, or labrum repair.
• Own a smartphone operating on the Android or iOS platform.
• Have received a full explanation of this clinical trial, understood it, voluntarily agreed to participate, and provided written consent to comply with study precautions.

You may not qualify if:

• History of previous rotator cuff repair surgery on the same site (revision surgery).
• Planning or recommendation by medical staff for contralateral rotator cuff repair surgery within one year after enrollment.
• Plans to receive direct manual therapy or invasive procedures (e.g., oriental medicine treatments, injections, regenerative therapies) at the surgical site through inpatient or outpatient care at another hospital within one year post-discharge.
• Presence of severe underlying conditions, neuromusculoskeletal disorders, visual impairment, uncontrolled diabetes, cardiovascular disorders, or other comorbidities that hinder participation in rehabilitation exercises.
• Difficulty using clinical trial medical devices due to cognitive impairment (e.g., dementia), visual impairment, or digital illiteracy.
• Other cases where the medical staff judges that unsupervised rehabilitation exercise is contraindicated or the principal investigator deems the subject unsuitable for the clinical trial.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Samsung Medical Center: lead

Study Sites (1)

Samsung medical center

Seoul, Republic of Korea, 06351, South Korea

RECRUITING

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Rotator Cuff Tear Arthropathy

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Chondrocalcinosis; Arthritis; Joint Diseases; Musculoskeletal Diseases; Crystal Arthropathies

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: DOUBLE
• Who Masked: INVESTIGATOR, OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Professor

Model Details: Prospective, randomized controlled, 1:1 allocation, total participants 70

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: September 28, 2025
• First Posted: December 1, 2025
• Study Start: October 20, 2025
• Primary Completion (Estimated): December 31, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 31, 2026
• Last Updated: December 1, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-11

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

KR (1)