IMPORTANCE: There are a myriad of available treatment options for patients with frozen shoulder, which can be overwhelming to the treating health care professional. OBJECTIVE: To assess and compare the effectiveness of available treatment options for frozen shoulder to guide musculoskeletal practitioners and inform guidelines. DATA SOURCES: Medline, Embase, Scopus, and CINAHL were searched in February 2020. STUDY SELECTION: Studies with a randomized design of any type that compared treatment modalities for frozen shoulder with other modalities, placebo, or no treatment were included. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: Data were independently extracted by 2 individuals. This study followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) reporting guideline. Random-effects models were used. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Pain and function were the primary outcomes, and external rotation range of movement (ER ROM) was the secondary outcome. Results of pairwise meta-analyses were presented as mean differences (MDs) for pain and ER ROM and standardized mean differences (SMDs) for function. Length of follow-up was divided into short-term (<= 12 weeks), mid-term (> 12 weeks to <= 12 months), and long-term (> 12 months) follow-up. RESULTS: From a total of 65 eligible studies with 4,097 participants that were included in the systematic review, 34 studies with 2,402 participants were included in pairwise meta-analyses and 39 studies with 2,736 participants in network meta-analyses. Despite several statistically significant results in pairwise meta-analyses, only the administration of intra-articular (IA) corticosteroid was associated with statistical and clinical superiority compared with other interventions in the short-term for pain (versus no treatment or placebo MD -1.0 visual analog scale (VAS) point; 95% CI -1.5 to -0.5 VAS points; p < 0.001; versus physiotherapy MD -1.1 VAS points; 95% CI -1.7 to -0.5 VAS points; p < 0.001) and function (versus no treatment or placebo SMD 0.6; 95% CI 0.3 to 0.9; p < 0.001; versus physiotherapy SMD 0.5; 95% CI 0.2 to 0.7; p < 0.001). Subgroup analyses and the network meta-analysis demonstrated that the addition of a home exercise program with simple exercises and stretches and physiotherapy (electrotherapy and/or mobilizations) to IA corticosteroid may be associated with added benefits in the mid-term (eg, pain for IA coritocosteriod with home exercise versus no treatment or placebo MD -1.4 VAS points; 95% CI -1.8 to -1.1 VAS points; p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: The findings of this study suggest that the early use of IA corticosteroid in patients with frozen shoulder of less than 1-year duration is associated with better outcomes. This treatment should be accompanied by a home exercise program to maximize the chance of recovery.

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