Rigid shoulder taping with physiotherapy in patients with subacromial pain syndrome: A randomized controlled trial

Objective: To assess the effectiveness of individualized physiotherapy in combination with rigid taping compared with individualized physiotherapy alone in patients with subacromial pain syndrome. Design: A prospective randomized trial with concealed allocation. Patients: A total of 140 patients between 18 and 65 years of age from primary physiotherapy settings. Methods: The intervention group received individualized physiotherapy and shoulder taping. The control group received individualized physiotherapy only. Primary outcomes were: pain intensity (numerical rating scale) and functioning (Simple Shoulder Test). Secondary outcomes were: global perceived effect and patient-specific complaints. Data were collected at baseline, and at 4, 12 and 26 weeks' follow-up. Results: During the 6-month follow-up period multilevel analysis showed a significant difference between groups favouring the control group on pain intensity (p = 0.02), but not on functioning. Regarding secondary outcomes, a significant difference between groups was found favouring the intervention group for global perceived effect (p = 0.02), but not for patient-specific complaints. Conclusion: Rigid shoulder taping, as used in this study, cannot be recommended for improving physiotherapy outcomes in people with subacromial pain syndrome.