Electrolysis Percutaneous Therapeutic (EPTE) for Supraspinatus Tendinopathy

Universidad Rey Juan Carlos

Status: Completed

Conditions: Supraspinatus Tendinopathy

Treatments: Other: Eccentric exercise; Other: Electrolysis Percutaneous Therapeutic (EPTE)

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT02196948

URJC 22/2014

Details and patient eligibility

About

Therapeutic management of supraspinatus tendinopathy is conflicting. There is evidence that eccentric exercise protocols can be effective for this condition. The inclusion of other therapeutic modalities could help to the management of these patients. A new therapeutic approach, called Electrolysis Percutaneous Therapeutic (EPTE) has been clinically developed. The objective of this randomized clinical trial is to determine the effectiveness of the inclusion of EPTE into a eccentric exercise protocol for the management of patients with unilateral supraspinatus tendinopathy

Enrollment: 36 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 65 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Unilateral supraspinatus tendinopathy
• Shoulder pain from at least 3 months
• Shoulder pain of more than 4 points on a NPRS
• Positive findings of supraspinatus tendinopathy on MRI

Exclusion criteria

• bilateral shoulder symptoms
• younger than 18 or older than 65 years
• history of shoulder fractures or dislocation
• cervical radiculopathy
• previous interventions with steroid injections
• fibromyalgia syndrome
• previous history of shoulder or neck surgery
• any type of intervention for the neck-shoulder area during the previous year

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Double Blind

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36 participants in 2 patient groups

Electrolysis Percutaneous Therapeutic (EPTE)

Experimental group

Description:

Electrolysis Percutaneous Therapeutic (EPTE) consists of the application of a galvanic electrical current with an acupuncture needle in the soft tissue, in this case the supraspinatus tendon, to initiate a local inflammatory process allowing phagocytosis and repair of the affected tissue. The technique is pain-free since the electrical intensity is adapted to each patient. In addition, patients will be asked to perform an eccentric loading exercise program for the shoulder musculature, particularly the supraspinatus and infraspinatus muscles, to be performed on an individual basis twice every day. The therapeutic protocol will be applied for 4 weeks.

Treatment:

Other: Electrolysis Percutaneous Therapeutic (EPTE)

Eccentric exercise

Experimental group

Description:

Patients will be asked to perform an eccentric loading exercise program for the shoulder musculature, particularly the supraspinatus and infraspinatus muscles, to be performed on an individual basis twice every day. The therapeutic protocol will be applied for 4 weeks.

Treatment:

Other: Eccentric exercise