Strapping the shoulder in patients following a cerebrovascular accident (CVA): A pilot study

This pilot study was undertaken to determine the effectiveness of a strapping technique to prevent the onset of shoulder pain in the hemiplegic upper limb of patients following a Cerebrovascular Accident (CVA). Eight patients with no voluntary movement in their hemiplegic upper limb were selected for inclusion within 48 hours of their admission to hospital. Four subjects were assigned to a strapping group and four were assigned to a non-strapping group. Each subject was assessed daily for the presence of shoulder pain utilising the Ritchie Articular Index, adapted for use with hemiplegic patients by Bohannon and LeFort (1986). The number of pain free days for each patient was recorded and a comparison made between the two groups. Results indicated that subjects in the strapping group experienced a significantly longer pain free period (mean=21 days) compared with the non-strapping group (mean=5.5 days). This pilot study demonstrated that strapping the affected shoulder following CVA did delay the onset of shoulder pain. However, further investigation with a larger study population is required to evaluate the effectiveness of the strapping technique against other factors.