Acute Effects of Kinesio Taping in Rotator Cuff Syndrome: A Randomized Controlled Trial

May 5, 2026 updated by: Atahan TURHAN, Kirsehir Ahi Evran Universitesi

Immediate Effects of Kinesio Taping on Pain, Range of Motion, Proprioception, and Kinesiophobia in Patients With Rotator Cuff Syndrome: A Randomized Controlled Trial

The first objective of this study is to evaluate the immediate effect of kinesio taping on pain levels in individuals with rotator cuff syndrome. The second objective is to evaluate the immediate effect of kinesio taping on range of motion. The third objective is to evaluate the immediate effect of kinesio taping on proprioception levels. The fourth objective is to evaluate the immediate effect of kinesio taping on kinesiophobia levels.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Enrolling by invitation

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
52

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Turkey (Türkiye)
    • Merkez
      • Kırşehir, Merkez, Turkey (Türkiye), 40100
        • Kırşehir Research and Training Hospital, Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Clinic

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Aged between 18 and 65 years
  • Diagnosed with rotator cuff syndrome by a physical medicine and rehabilitation specialist
  • Experiencing shoulder pain for at least 3 months
  • Willing to participate and provide written informed consent
  • No adhesive capsulitis
  • No shoulder or neck surgery history
  • No injection in the shoulder region within the last 6 months
  • No neurological, rheumatological, or cognitive disorders
  • No cervical radiculopathy
  • No scoliosis
  • No open wounds in the application area
  • No known allergy to kinesiology tape (negative skin test)

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Development of allergic reaction to kinesiology tape during the study
  • Withdrawal of consent at any stage of the study
  • Inability to complete post-intervention assessments
  • Development of any condition that prevents safe participation in the study
  • Non-compliance with study procedures

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Kinesiology taping
Elastic kinesiology tape (Kinesio Tape Tex Gold, 5 cm width) will be applied to the shoulder region. A Y-shaped strip will be placed over the anterior and posterior deltoid muscles with 10-15% tension during shoulder positioning in external rotation and abduction/adduction. An additional I-shaped strip will be applied over the acromioclavicular joint for mechanical correction. Application will be performed by a trained physiotherapist.
Other: Kinesiology taping
Elastic kinesiology tape (Kinesio Tape Tex Gold, 5 cm width) will be applied to the shoulder region. A Y-shaped strip will be placed over the anterior and posterior deltoid muscles with 10-15% tension during shoulder positioning in external rotation and abduction/adduction. An additional I-shaped strip will be applied over the acromioclavicular joint for mechanical correction. Application will be performed by a trained physiotherapist.
Sham Comparator: Placebo Taping Group
Participants in this group will receive sham taping using the same elastic kinesiology tape (Kinesio Tape Tex Gold, 5 cm) applied without therapeutic tension or mechanical correction. The tape will be placed superficially over the shoulder region to mimic the application procedure without intending to produce biomechanical or neurosensory effects.
Other: Placebo Taping Group
Participants in this group will receive sham taping using the same elastic kinesiology tape (Kinesio Tape Tex Gold, 5 cm) applied without therapeutic tension or mechanical correction. The tape will be placed superficially over the shoulder region to mimic the application procedure without intending to produce biomechanical or neurosensory effects.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Visual Analog Scale
Time Frame: Baseline and 30 minutes after intervention
Shoulder pain intensity will be assessed using a 10-cm Visual Analog Scale (VAS), where 0 indicates no pain and 10 indicates the worst imaginable pain. Pain will be evaluated at rest, during activity, and at night.
Baseline and 30 minutes after intervention
Shoulder range of motion
Time Frame: Baseline and 30 minutes after intervention
Shoulder joint range of motion (flexion, extension, internal rotation, and external rotation) will be measured using a universal goniometer.
Baseline and 30 minutes after intervention
Tampa Kinesiophobia Scale
Time Frame: Baseline and 30 minutes after intervention
Kinesiophobia will be measured using the Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia, a 17-item questionnaire scored on a 4-point Likert scale ranging from 17 to 68, with higher scores indicating greater fear of movement.
Baseline and 30 minutes after intervention
Laser-Pointer Assisted Angle Reproduction Test
Time Frame: Baseline and 30 minutes after intervention
Proprioception will be assessed using a laser pointer-assisted angle reproduction test at predefined shoulder positions (55°, 90°, 125°). Angular deviation will be recorded in degrees.
Baseline and 30 minutes after intervention

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Kirsehir Ahi Evran Universitesi

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
May 3, 2025

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
May 3, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
September 3, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
May 5, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 5, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
May 11, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
May 11, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 5, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • KAEU-T.ATAHAN-013

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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