Effects of Exercise or Taping on Pain, Function, Range of Motion, Strength and Kyphosis in Subacromial Pain Syndrome

Effects of Adding Thoracic Extension Exercises or Thoracic Kinesio Taping to Shoulder Exercises on Pain, Function, Range of Motion, Strength, and Thoracic Kyphosis in Adults With Subacromial Pain Syndrome

Participants with subacromial pain syndrome underwent shoulder exercises. In addition to the exercises, group A received thoracic extension exercise and group B received kinesio taping. All exercises were performed five days per week for three weeks. Thoracic extension exercise was performed once a week and remained in place for 5 days. Evaluations were performed one to three days before and one to three days after the three-week exercise program.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Subacromial Impingement Syndrome; Shoulder Pain; Exercise Addiction
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: Shoulder exercises + Thoracic extension exercise; Other: Shoulder exercises + Thoracic kinesio taping; Other: Shoulder exercises

Detailed Description

Seventy-five adults with subacromial pain syndrome were randomized into three groups. Group A and Group B received thoracal extension exersice and thoracal kinesiotaping in addition to shoulder exercise, respectively, while Group C received only shoulder exercise. All exercises were performed five days a week for three weeks. Thoracal extension exercise was applied once a week and remained in place for 5 days. Assessments were conducted one to three days before and one to three days after the three-week exercise program. Shoulder pain intensity, pressure pain threshold (PPT) of the upper trapezius and pectoralis major, self-reported function and health status, active range of motion (AROM), and isometric strength of the shoulder were assessed.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 75
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Turkey (Türkiye)
  • Izmir, Turkey (Türkiye)
    • Izmir Bakircay University Cigli Training and Research Hospital

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Having shoulder pain for at least 6 weeks
• Aggravation of shoulder pain with resisted shoulder movements

Exclusion Criteria:

• Those with full-thickness rotator cuff rupture
• Those who have had previous shoulder surgery
• Those who have had cervical or thoracic spine surgery
• Those with a history of inflammatory disease or cancer

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

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

Number of Arms

3

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: Group A; In addition to shoulder exercises, thoracic extension exercises were performed.	Other: Shoulder exercises + Thoracic extension exercise; Shoulder exercises and thoracic extension exercises were performed 5 days a week for 3 weeks.
Active Comparator: Group B; In addition to shoulder exercises, kinesio taping was applied.	Other: Shoulder exercises + Thoracic kinesio taping; In addition to shoulder exercises, thoracic kinesio taping was applied. Shoulder exercises were performed 5 days a week for 3 weeks. TKT was applied once a week and remained in place for 5 days.
Active Comparator: Group C; Only shoulder exercises were performed.	Other: Shoulder exercises; Shoulder exercises were performed. They were performed 5 days a week for 3 weeks.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Shoulder function assessment	Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand Questionnaire was used to assess the condition. It is a questionnaire used to evaluate upper extremity function status. The questionnaire consists of three sections, and the person marks the appropriate answer for each question on the Likert system with a score of 5 (1: no difficulty, 2: mild difficulty, 3: moderate difficulty, 4: extreme difficulty, 5: completely unable to do). According to the DASH questionnaire result; a result between 0-100 is obtained from each section.	At the beginning and after 3 weeks
Muscle strength assessment	Muscle strength will be measured with a digital hand dynamometer. Muscle strength measurements of the subjects' flexion, extension abduction, adduction, external and internal rotation movements will be made. The measurements made with the dynamometer will be based on the fine muscle test positions and method defined by Lovett. The tests will be repeated three times and at least one minute of rest will be given between repetitions. The highest of the 3 repetitions was accepted as the result.	At the beginning and after 3 weeks
Thoracic kyphosis assessment	For thoracic kyphosis measurement, inclinometers were placed at T1-T2 and T12-L1 to perform the evaluation.	At the beginning and after 3 weeks
Pressure pain threshold assessment	Pressure pain threshold measurement was measured with an algometer device. Algometers are a device that can be used to define pressure and pressure pain threshold. Upper trapezius and pectoralis major muscles were evaluated.	At the beginning and after 3 weeks
Quality of life assessment	Health-related quality of life (SF-36) was assessed with the questionnaire. It consists of 36 items in total and has eight sub-parameters. These eight sub-parameters consist of physical function, pain, social function, physical role limitations, mental health, emotional role limitations, vitality, and general health parameters. The sub-scales are scored between 0-100 and an increase of 26 points indicates an increase in the quality of life.	At the beginning and after 3 weeks
Pain intensity assessment	It was evaluated using a visual analog scale. The scale is between 0 and 10 points, and increasing numbers indicate increased pain intensity.	At the beginning and after 3 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Sevtap Günay
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Sevtap GUNAY UCURUM, Assoc. Dr., Izmir Katip Çelebi University, Department of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation; Principal Investigator: Müge KIRMIZI, dr. lecturer, Izmir Katip Çelebi University, Department of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation; Study Chair: Ayşenur YUKSEL, PT, Department of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation, Bakircay University Training and Research Hospital

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): June 6, 2022
• Primary Completion (Actual): June 15, 2024
• Study Completion (Actual): December 6, 2024

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: January 10, 2025
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: January 10, 2025
• First Posted (Actual): January 15, 2025

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimated): September 8, 2025
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 31, 2025
• Last Verified: August 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Kinesio taping; Shoulder pain; Shoulder function; Shoulder exercise; Thoracic exercise; Thoracic posture
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Shoulder Injuries; Pain; Neurologic Manifestations; Musculoskeletal Diseases; Wounds and Injuries; Joint Diseases; Arthralgia; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms; Signs and Symptoms; Shoulder Pain; Shoulder Impingement Syndrome
• Other Study ID Numbers: KatipCelebiUniversity

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