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Updated: Jun 20, 2026
A Treatment Protocol for Achilles Tendinopathy with Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy
Published on: August 2, 2024
Radial extracorporeal shockwave treatment compared with supervised exercises in patients with subacromial pain
Kaia Engebretsen1, Margreth Grotle, Erik Bautz-Holter
1Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Ullevaal University Hospital, Kirkeveien 166, 0407 Oslo, Norway. kaiabe@medisin.uio.no
Objective:
To compare the effectiveness of radial extracorporeal shockwave treatment with that of supervised exercises in patients with shoulder pain.
Design:
Single blind randomised study.
Setting:
Outpatient clinic of physical medicine and rehabilitation department in Oslo, Norway.
Participants:
104 patients with subacromial shoulder pain lasting at least three months.
Interventions:
Radial extracorporeal shockwave treatment: one session weekly for four to six weeks. Supervised exercises: two 45 minute sessions weekly for up to 12 weeks. Primary outcome measure Shoulder pain and disability index.
Results:
A treatment effect in favour of supervised exercises at 6, 12, and 18 weeks was found. The adjusted treatment effect was -8.4 (95% confidence interval -16.5 to -0.6) points. A significantly higher proportion of patients in the group treated with supervised exercises improved-odds ratio 3.2 (1.3 to 7.8). More patients in the shockwave treatment group had additional treatment between 12 and 18 weeks-odds ratio 5.5 (1.3 to 26.4).
Conclusion:
Supervised exercises were more effective than radial extracorporeal shockwave treatment for short term improvement in patients with subacromial shoulder pain.
Trial Registration:
Clinical trials NCT00653081.
