The Effect of Early-Phase Graded Motor Imagery Following Massive Rotator Cuff Repair.

NCT07481864 | Not Yet Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: 2025-10-384
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 38
• Locations: 0 countries
• Sites: N/A

Brief Summary

Massive rotator cuff tears are associated with significant pain, functional limitations, and prolonged rehabilitation following surgical repair. In the early postoperative phase, rehabilitation protocols are often limited due to surgical protection requirements, which may delay the restoration of motor control and shoulder function. Graded motor imagery (GMI), a movement representation technique that includes laterality recognition, motor imagery, and mirror therapy, has been shown to modulate cortical processing and improve pain and motor function in various musculoskeletal and neurological conditions. However, its potential role in early postoperative shoulder rehabilitation has not been adequately investigated.

Conditions

Shoulder Pain

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (3)

• Pain Intensity (Numeric Rating Scale, NRS)

  Pain intensity will be assessed using the Numeric Rating Scale (NRS), where participants rate their average shoulder pain over the past 24 hours on a scale from 0 (no pain) to 10 (worst imaginable pain). Pain will be evaluated at rest, during activity, and at night.

  Baseline (postoperative day 0), 2 weeks, 4 weeks, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks after surgery.

• Subjective Shoulder Value (SSV)

  Participants will rate the overall function of their shoulder on a 10-cm scale ranging from "as bad as it could be" to "as good as it could be."

  Baseline (postoperative day 0), 2 weeks, 4 weeks, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks.

• Passive Shoulder Range of Motion

  Passive shoulder range of motion will be measured using a goniometer.

  4 weeks, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks after surgery.

Secondary Outcomes (5)

• Shoulder Pain and Disability Index (SPADI)

  6 weeks and 12 weeks after surgery.

• Motor Imagery Ability (VMIQ-2)

  Baseline (postoperative day 0), 6 weeks, and 12 weeks.

• Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia (TSK)

  Baseline (postoperative day 0), 6 weeks, and 12 weeks.

• Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS)

  Baseline (postoperative day 0), 6 weeks, and 12 weeks.

• Pain Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (PSEQ)

  Baseline (postoperative day 0), 6 weeks, and 12 weeks.

Study Arms (2)

Conventional Rehabilitation Program

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Participants will receive a conventional postoperative rehabilitation program following massive rotator cuff repair. The program will include standard physiotherapy interventions such as protected passive range-of-motion exercises, gradual progression to active-assisted and active exercises, scapular stabilization exercises, and pain management strategies according to the early postoperative rehabilitation protocol.

Other: Graded Motor İmagery

Graded motor imagery

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants in the experimental group will receive the conventional rehabilitation program in addition to a graded motor imagery intervention. The graded motor imagery program will include laterality recognition training, motor imagery exercises, and mirror therapy tasks aimed at activating cortical motor networks without physical shoulder movement during the early postoperative phase.

Other: Graded Motor İmagery

Interventions

Graded Motor İmagery OTHER

The graded motor imagery program will include laterality recognition training, motor imagery exercises, and mirror therapy tasks aimed at activating cortical motor networks without physical shoulder movement during the early postoperative phase.

Conventional Rehabilitation Program; Graded motor imagery

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 30 Years - 65 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Age between 30 and 65 years
• Presence of an arthroscopically repaired anterior-superior rotator cuff tear, involving the supraspinatus and subscapularis tendons

You may not qualify if:

• Age younger than 30 years or older than 65 years
• Presence of severe malignant, hematological, endocrine, metabolic, rheumatologic, or gastrointestinal diseases
• Diagnosis of glenohumeral osteoarthritis (Kellgren-Lawrence grade III or higher, with radiographic evidence of osteophytes)
• Current treatment with cytotoxic agents or systemic corticosteroids
• Alcohol dependence, history of substance abuse, or psychological/emotional disorders that may compromise the validity of informed consent
• Previous surgery on the ipsilateral shoulder
• Multiple tendon tears, such as combined tears involving the supraspinatus together with the infraspinatus or subscapularis tendons

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Acibadem 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

Central Study Contacts

Nuray ALACA

CONTACT

05324251290; nuray.alaca@acibadem.edu.tr

Study Design

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

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: March 16, 2026
• First Posted: March 19, 2026
• Study Start (Estimated): August 15, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): August 30, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): October 30, 2026
• Last Updated: March 19, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-03