Research and News
Posts tagged shoulder
Introducing the New Thera-Band Shoulder Pulley
May 2nd
Akron, Ohio – April 30, 2010 – Performance Health / Hygenic Corporation announces the introduction of the new Thera-Band® Shoulder Pulley, an essential tool for patients undergoing shoulder rehabilitation in regaining and maintaining range of motion.
“Unlike conventional pulleys, the Thera-Band Shoulder Pulley features a unique rope that’s divided into sections by distinct black marks. By referencing the position of these marks during exercise, patients get immediate feedback on progress. This visual feedback validates that they are improving, which is key to patient motivation,” stated Anna Schrock, Product Manager for Performance Health / Hygenic Corporation. “The marked rope also allows the rehab professional to set precise goals and limitations so that patients know how far to go and where to stop.”
“The ability to move the shoulder joint is vital for functionality in everyday physical activities, and anyone from weekend athletes to gardeners to do-it-yourself painters can experience shoulder problems,” added Phil Page, PhD, PT, ATC, CSCS, director of clinical education and research for the Thera-Band Academy. “We commonly see limited range of motion in post-operative rotator cuff tear repairs, shoulder reconstruction, and frozen shoulder, or ‘adhesive capsulitis’ patients. Physical therapy and therapeutic exercise are the keys to successful outcomes in these patients, More >
Stable vs. Unstable: Using Exercise Balls with the Overhead Press Exercise
Apr 29th
“Functional Training” has become increasingly popular in both rehabilitation and fitness. “Core training” has often been considered a component of functional training because of the transfer of force through the trunk to the extremities. Unstable surfaces such as Thera-Band® Exercise Balls and Stability Trainers are often used with traditional exercise movements to integrate training of the trunk and extremities.
Canadian researchers Anderson and Behm have shown that instability training can provide similar muscle activation levels at lower resistance levels compared to training on stable surfaces. Unfortunately, however, unstable surface training also results in a decrease force output of prime movers. California State University researchers set out to evaluate the electromyographic (EMG) activity of prime movers and core stabilizers during a seated overhead press exercise. 30 healthy, resistance-trained subjects performed an overhead press with dumbbells and barbells while sitting on a stable surface and on an exercise ball. The investigators were interested in looking for differences in EMG levels between the stable load (barbell) and unstable load (dumbbell), on both stable (bench) and unstable surfaces (exercise ball). Subjects used a 10RM resistance (maximum amount of weight lifted for 10 repetitions) for each of the 4 conditions; thus, each condition had a slightly different absolute load.
As expected, More >
Researchers encourage proprioceptive exercises for shoulder rehabilitation
Apr 27th
Proprioceptive exercises are commonly prescribed for lower extremity rehabilitation. More recently, sensorimotor (SMT) proprioceptive exercises have been used for shoulder rehabilitation. It’s thought that shoulder injury (in particular, shoulder instability) is related to proprioceptive deficits. Researchers speculate that deafferentation (loss of sensory information) from the mechanoreceptors of the shoulder joint capsule and altered proprioceptive information create these sensorimotor deficits (Lephart et al. 1997; Tibone et al. 1997)
A review paper in Athletic Training and Sports Healthcare discussed the adaptations of the sensorimotor system following shoulder rehabilitation. The authors used the PEDro system for inclusion criteria to review 23 articles. The most common techniques the paper reviewed included:
- Joint repositioning
- Closed-kinetic chain exercises
- Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation (PNF)
- Plyometrics
- Joint Perturbations
- Activation of muscle through elastic tubing, free weights or oscillation
The authors concluded that sensorimotor rehabilitation after shoulder injury is crucial, and that the sensorimotor system is, in fact, trainable. A proprioceptive and sensorimotor training program including Thera-Band® elastic bands and tubing, FlexBar® Oscillation, and closed-kinetic shoulder exercises with Stability Trainers should be included as part of a shoulder rehabilitation or prevention program.
Reference: Myers JB, and Oyama S. 2009. Sensorimotor training for shoulder injury. Athletic Training & Sports Health Care. 1(5):199-208.
Click here to visit the Thera-Band Academy Shoulder Center
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Exercises with elastic resistance more effective than passive shockwave treatment
Mar 24th
Shoulder impingement is a common cause of shoulder pain that responds well to active, therapeutic exercise. A more passive “shockwave treatment” has recently been used to treat impingement. This passive modality was compared with an active exercise treatment in shoulder impingement patients in Norway. The study published in the British Medical Journal compared 12 weeks of physiotherapy and home exercise using elastic tubing with 4 to 6 treatments of Radial Extracorporeal Shockwave Treatment (REST).
64% of the exercise patients and only 36% of the shockwave treatment patients had significant improvement in pain and disability, and more patients in the exercise group returned to work. Interestingly however, there were no significant differences between groups in function or range of motion.
This study is consistent with the findings of other studies that show elastic resistance exercises are effective as part of an active care approach to shoulder impingement that includes both clinic- and home-based exercises. Thera-Band® elastic resistance and patient kits are ideal to facilitate both clinical and home exercise programs.
Engebretsen K, et al. Radial extracorporeal shockwave treatment compared with supervised exercises in patients with subacromial pain syndrome: single blind randomised study. BMJ. 2009;339:b3360.
Visit the Thera-Band Academy Shoulder Impingement Center Here
More >Systematic review supports use of elastic resistance exercise for shoulder impingement
Mar 9th
Shoulder impingement is a common cause of chronic shoulder pain that can be treated with exercise. Impingement can be caused by a structural narrowing of the space between the humeral bone and acromion of the scapula, or by a muscle imbalance of the rotator cuff and/or scapular stabilizer muscles. These types of impingement are referred to as structural and functional, respectively.
Thera-Band® resistance band exercises are commonly used in rehabilitation of shoulder impingement. In fact, nearly 75% (9 out of 13) of the studies in a systematic review of physiotherapy exercises for impingement included elastic resistance exercise for the rotator cuff and scapula. In their review, Kromer and colleagues found that passive treatments (such as modalities only) are not effective and cannot be justified when treating shoulder impingement.
The authors found that physiotherapist-led exercises were as effective as surgery for shoulder impingement. In addition, home-based exercises were as effective as physiotherapy interventions, although manual therapy in the clinic may provide additional short-term relief. Based on these conclusions, Thera-Band resistance band exercises in the clinic or home can be an effective and safer alternative to surgery.
Kromer TO, et al. Effects of physiotherapy in patients with shoulder impingement syndrome: a systematic review of the literature. J Rehabil Med. 2009;41(11):870-80.
