Retraining the brain to unfreeze the shoulder: a promising new therapy?
NCT ID NCT05372497
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study tested whether adding brain-based treatments—like pain education and sensory training—to standard physical therapy helps people with frozen shoulder more than therapy alone. 21 adults with chronic frozen shoulder were split into two groups: one received only conventional physiotherapy, the other got that plus a 4-week central nervous system focused program. The goal was to see if the extra training could reduce pain, improve movement, and change how patients think about their pain.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- central nervous system focused therapy (pain education, sensory training, graded motor imagery, mirror therapy) plus conventional physiotherapy
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this approach could offer a more effective way to reduce pain and improve shoulder function in people with frozen shoulder, potentially shortening recovery time.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage trial with only 21 participants, so results may not apply to everyone. The added therapy is time-intensive, and benefits over standard care may be modest.
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
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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
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48 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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May 2022
- Finished
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Nov 2022
- Lead sponsor
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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
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18 to 65 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Being diagnosed with frozen shoulder with chronic pain lasting more than 3 months * Being between the ages of 18-65 * Absence of fracture, dislocation or arthritis in the shoulder area evaluated by routine x-ray examination * Patients who were not prescribed any medical treatment other than analgesics in the last 3 months were included. Exclusion Criteria: * Wide scar around the shoulder * History of bilateral concurrent frozen shoulder * If there has been surgical intervention on the affected shoulder * Rotator cuff calcification * Cervical radiculopathy * History of physical therapy program for the same shoulder in the last 6 months
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Istanbul Medipol University Esenler Hospital
Istanbul, Istanbul, 34230, Turkey (Türkiye)
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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