Radial Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy in Individuals With Iliotibial Band Syndrome

June 19, 2026 updated by: Ahmed ElMelhat, Cairo University

Effectiveness of Radial Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy in Individuals With Iliotibial Band Syndrome

The goal of this Clinical Trial Study is to evaluate the clinical effectiveness of Radial Electrocorporeal Shockwave Therapy (rESWT) combined with exercise in individuals with iliotibial band syndrome (ITBS).The main question it aims to answer is : Does the addition of rESWT to standard ITBS exercise program reduce pain intensity and pain pressure threshold while improving lower extremity function and hip muscle strength in Individuals with Iliotibial Band syndrome (ITBS). Participants will be divided into two groups to be compared : The ShamTherapy Group (Control Group) that will receive the standard ITBS exercise program in addition to Sham rESWT, while the experimental group will receive the standard ITBS exercise program in addition to Radial Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy.

Study Overview

Status

Recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

The Iliotibial Band Syndrome is a frequently occurring overuse condition among runners and active individuals that often leads to persistent lateral knee pain and reduced function. Although exercise, particularly hip abductor strengthening, is considered effective, the optimal rehabilitation approach remains unclear. Recent evidence suggests that combining Radial Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy with exercise may improve pain and function more than exercise alone.Therefore, evaluating whether the combination of rESWT and exercise is more effective than exercise alone is clinically relevant.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

40

Phase

  • 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 Contact

Study Locations

  • Egypt
    • Giza Governorate
      • Giza, Giza Governorate, Egypt, 2356
        • Recruiting
        • Cairo University Hospitals

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

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Physically active individuals aged 18 and 45 years
  • Have a clinical diagnosis of iliotibial band syndrome (ITBS) confirmed by physician within the previous four weeks.
  • Report lateral knee pain during running or other functional activities
  • No history of direct trauma
  • Have a positive Noble compression or/and Ober test.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • History of knee surgery,fracture , meniscal or ligamentous injury within the past year
  • Any fracture involving the lower extremity within the previous six months
  • Neurological disorders
  • Lumbar radiculopathy
  • Systemic inflammatory disease
  • Any medical condition affecting gat or lower extremity function.
  • Have received corticosteroid injection, shockwave therapy, or physical therapy treatment for ITBS within the previous six months
  • Use of NDAID's or analgesics later than 2 weeks
  • Individuals with contraindications to ESWT, including pregnancy, bleeding disorders, or use of anticoagulant medication.

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: Double

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: Sham rESWT and Standard ITBS Exercise Program
This group will receive Sham rESWT and standard ITBS Exercise Program that will include ITB stretching and strengthening exercises mainly targeting hip abductors, hip external rotators and knee extensors.
Other: Standard ITBS Exercise Program
Standard ITBS Exercise Program : Flexibility and Strengthening Exercises will be delivered three times weekly over a 4-week period
Device: Sham Extracorporal Shockwave Therapy
Sham Extracorporal Shockwave therapy will be administered once a week for 4 weeks.
Experimental: rESWT combined with exercise program
The experimental group will receive the same standard exercise program in addition to rESWT on the distal portion of the ITB and the region of lateral femoral condyle.
Other: Standard ITBS Exercise Program
Standard ITBS Exercise Program : Flexibility and Strengthening Exercises will be delivered three times weekly over a 4-week period
Device: Radial Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy
Radial Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy will be delivered once weekly for 4 weeks only.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Numerical Pain Rating Scale Score (NPRS)
Time Frame: baseline , immediately after the 4-week intervention period ( post intervention ) ,4 weeks after the intervention cessation as follow-up.
To assess lateral knee pain intensity at rest and during activity Scores range from 0 (no pain) to 10 (worst pain)
baseline , immediately after the 4-week intervention period ( post intervention ) ,4 weeks after the intervention cessation as follow-up.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Lower extremity Functional Scale (LEFS)
Time Frame: baseline , immediately after the 4-week intervention period ( post intervention ) ,4 weeks after the intervention cessation as follow-up.
to assess the functional status of lower extremities. It consists of 20 items, each item is scored according to its difficulty : from 0 (extreme difficulty) to 4 (no difficulty),with a maximum score of 80 ( full function).
baseline , immediately after the 4-week intervention period ( post intervention ) ,4 weeks after the intervention cessation as follow-up.
Hip muscle strength dynamometer testing
Time Frame: baseline , immediately after the 4-week intervention period ( post intervention ) ,4 weeks after the intervention cessation as follow-up.
Hip ABD , ADD , IR and ER strength will be measured. Each strength will be measured twice using a hand held dynamometer . The mean value of the two values will be calculated.
baseline , immediately after the 4-week intervention period ( post intervention ) ,4 weeks after the intervention cessation as follow-up.
Pain Pressure Threshold algometry testing (PPT)
Time Frame: baseline , immediately after the 4-week intervention period ( post intervention ) ,4 weeks after the intervention cessation as follow-up.
PPT is measured three times using algometry that applies a gradually increasing pressure over the lateral femoral condyle\distal ITB region until PPT is reached. The average of the 3 measurements will be calculated.
baseline , immediately after the 4-week intervention period ( post intervention ) ,4 weeks after the intervention cessation as follow-up.

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Cairo University

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Ahmed El Melhat, PhD, Cairo University

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

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 (Estimated)

June 10, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

August 10, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

August 30, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

June 19, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 19, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

June 25, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

June 25, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 19, 2026

Last Verified

June 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • rESWT and exercises in ITBS

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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