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Can mirror therapy and action observation rewire the brain to ease shoulder pain?

NCT ID NCT06823206

Symptom relief Sponsor: The Hong Kong Polytechnic University Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

What the study statuses mean

This study's is highlighted.

Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now This study
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Sep 17, 2026 · Last updated Sep 18, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

Researchers are testing whether a 12-week program that combines movement representation techniques with sensorimotor training can reduce shoulder pain in adults aged 50 and older who have had rotator cuff related shoulder pain for more than three months. The program uses action observation, mirror therapy, and shoulder control exercises. Participants are randomly assigned to the training or to standard care. The study measures pain, disability, brain structure, shoulder joint space, and pain-related beliefs to understand how the treatment might work.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance
sensorimotor training combined with movement representation techniques, including action observation and mirror therapy
What this could lead to
If it works, this approach could offer a non-drug way to ease long-lasting shoulder pain and change how the brain controls the shoulder.
What could go wrong
This is a single-center trial of 122 people, so results may not apply to everyone with shoulder pain. The training may not outperform standard care, and brain imaging changes may not translate into less pain.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Not a phased trial

Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.

Participants

About 122 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Started

Mar 2025

Expected to finish

Dec 2027

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

Other sponsor

The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

50 years and older

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Not accepted

This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: * Aged 50 or above * Presence of shoulder pain for more than three months * Clinical test showed 3/5 positive tests (painful arc, resisted external rotation, Neer test, Kennedy-Hawkins test, and Jobe test), and the intensity of pain being provoked should be ≥ 3/10 on an 11-point numeric pain rating scale (NPRS) * Structural changes of rotator cuff tendons using MRI or ultrasound imaging Exclusion Criteria: * History of trauma * Shoulder fracture, glenohumeral osteoarthritis, or arthritis in the acromioclavicular joint * Clinically suspected labrum lesion * Previous shoulder surgery or dislocation * Clinical signs of anterior shoulder instability * Clinical signs of frozen shoulders * Previous clinical treatment or corticosteroid injection for a shoulder injury within the last 12 months * Symptoms referred from or related to the spine; and (9) other competing diagnoses (i.e., rheumatoid arthritis, cancer, neurological disorders, fibromyalgia, or psychiatric illness).

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

rotator cuff syndrome

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Rotator cuff related shoulder pain

How to take part

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  1. The places running it

    1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.

  2. The official record

    ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.

    Open the record ↗

  3. A doctor treating you

    A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

    RECRUITING

    Hong Kong, Hong Kong

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