Individual Versus Group-based Exercise Rehabilitation for Shoulder Disorders: a Randomised Controlled Trial

Individual Versus Group-based Exercise Rehabilitation for Shoulder Disorders

Degenerative shoulder disorders are frequent in the Danish population and often cause disability and sick leave. After hospital discharge patients are often referred to physiotherapy rehabilitation as part of the treatment, and it is often assumed that one-on-one sessions will yield better results than group-based sessions, because individual needs can be better meet and targeted

The project aims to evaluate the effect and cost-effectiveness of group- based exercise rehabilitation as compared to individual exercise rehabilitation in patients with degenerative shoulder disorders.

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The study is a three-armed controlled randomized trial in which a total of 180 patients referred to the municipal rehabilitation after hospital treatment due to shoulder disorders in 6 municipalities in Region Midtjylland expected to participate. Patients will be allocated to either 1) Group-based rehabilitation 2) Individual rehabilitation or 3) Home exercise.

Inclusion Criteria:

• 18 years and above, ability to speak and understand Danish and referred to physiotherapy rehabilitation after hospital conservative or surgical treatment under diagnose of rotator cuff/shoulder impingement or acromioclavicular osteoarthritis (International Classification of Diseases 10th revision [ICD-10] group M75.1-M75.8, M19.8).

Exclusion Criteria:

• Influence of co-morbidity, psychiatric illness, pregnancy, fullthickness rotator cuff tear, rotator cuff repair surgery, traumatic lesion, rheumatoid arthritis, frozen shoulder, glenohumeral osteoarthritis.