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Neuromuscular electrical stimulation-enhanced physical therapist intervention for functional posterior shoulder instability (type B1): a multicenter randomized controlled trial [with consumer summary]
Moroder P, Karpinski K, Akgun D, Danzinger V, Gerhardt C, Patzer T, Tauber M, Wellmann M, Scheibel M, Boileau P, Lambert S, Porcellini G, Audige L
Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation Journal 2023 Oct 23:Epub ahead of print
clinical trial
6/10 [Eligibility criteria: Yes; Random allocation: Yes; Concealed allocation: Yes; Baseline comparability: Yes; Blind subjects: No; Blind therapists: No; Blind assessors: No; Adequate follow-up: No; Intention-to-treat analysis: Yes; Between-group comparisons: Yes; Point estimates and variability: Yes. Note: Eligibility criteria item does not contribute to total score] *This score has been confirmed*

OBJECTIVE: Functional posterior shoulder instability (FPSI) (type B1) is a severe type of instability, mainly in teenagers and young adults, that leads to loss of function, pain, and stigmatization among peers. An experimental nonsurgical treatment protocol based on neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) showed very promising early results in the treatment of FPSI. The hypothesis of this study was that NMES-enhanced physical therapy leads to better outcomes than physical therapy alone as the current gold standard of treatment in patients with FPSI. METHODS: In this multicenter randomized controlled trial, patients with FPSI were randomly allocated in a 1 to 1 ratio to either 6 weeks of physical therapy or 6 weeks of physical therapy with simultaneous motion-triggered NMES. Baseline scores as well as outcome scores at 6 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months after the intervention were obtained. The predefined primary outcome of this trial was the Western Ontario Shoulder Instability Index (WOSI) at the 3-month time point. RESULTS: Forty-nine patients were randomized and eligible for the trial. The group that received physical therapy with simultaneous motion-triggered NMES showed a significantly better main outcome measurement in terms of the 3-month WOSI score (64% (SD 16%) versus 51% (SD 24%)). Two-thirds of the patients from the physical therapy group crossed over to the group that received physical therapy with simultaneous motion-triggered NMES due to dissatisfaction after the 3-month follow-up and showed a significant increase in their WOSI score from 49% (SD 8%) to 67% (SD 24%). The frequency of instability episodes showed a significant improvement in the group that received physical therapy with simultaneous motion-triggered NMES at the 3-month follow-up and beyond, while in the physical therapy group no significant difference was observed. CONCLUSION: The current study shows that NMES-enhanced physical therapy led to statistically significant and clinically relevant improvement in outcomes in the treatment of FPSI compared to conventional physical therapy alone-from which even patients with prior unsatisfactory results after conventional physical therapy can benefit.

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