Testing Shoulder Pain Mapping

A previous study on shoulder pain mapping showed specific pain patterns for common shoulder disorders. This study aimed to test those patterns for accuracy, modify shoulder pain mapping as needed, and observe their reliability and validity.

This prospective study used a two-step process and was undertaken to determine its potential utility in daily practice. New shoulder pain patients marked their pain, its character and severity, on a custom-made mapping form. Then a researcher blinded to the diagnoses gave their estimations on the basis of previously established maps, and they were correlated with final diagnoses. Subsequently, a guide table was developed on how to read the maps, and intertester reliability was performed with three independent testers.

The study included 194 patients, and the overall accuracy for estimations was between 45.4% and 49.5%. The sensitivity was high, especially for instability, followed by calcific tendinitis, acromio-calvicular joint pathology, and impingement. The intertester reliability showed clinically significant agreement between testers for both disease groups (κ = 0.70) and individual disorders (κ = 0.52).

This was a unique and extensive study on shoulder pain mapping. The study concluded that pain mapping could be a useful adjunct to the clinical assessment of patients with shoulder pain and can be used in the primary care setting as well as secondary care and for research.