Shoulder surgery recovery: PRP vs steroids – which works better?
NCT ID NCT05603468
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study compares two common injections—platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and corticosteroids—given during arthroscopic rotator cuff repair. 387 adults with full-thickness supraspinatus tears are randomly assigned to receive PRP, corticosteroid, or a placebo injection during surgery. The main goal is to see which treatment improves shoulder function best over time, measured by the Oxford Shoulder Score.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and corticosteroid
- What this could lead to
- If PRP works better than steroids, it could offer a more natural treatment option to improve shoulder recovery after rotator cuff surgery.
- What could go wrong
- This is a phase 4 trial comparing two existing treatments, so no major breakthrough is expected. Results may show only modest differences, and PRP preparation varies between clinics.
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
-
Phase 4
Runs after approval, following long-term safety and how well the treatment works in everyday use.
- Participants
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About 387 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Dec 2022
- Expected to finish
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Dec 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- 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 80 years
- Sex
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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 Hide 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: * Rotator cuff tears were diagnosis by magnetic resonance imaging or arthroscopy * Surgical intervention of rotator cuff tears was proposed. * Simple full-layer tear of supraspinatus tendon. * Patients give informed consent, and sign the informed consent form, and the process must meet the requirements of GCP Exclusion Criteria: * Patients with rotator cuff injuries involving infraspinatus, subscapularis, and teres minor tendon injuries * Patients platelet concentration is lower than 100×109 * Patients have other shoulder diseases, including osteoarthritis, cervical spondylosis, etc.patients have inflammatory diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, rheumatic polymyalgia, etc.patients have received injection treatment within 3 months. * Patients have participated in clinical trials or are conducting other clinical trials within 3 months before screening. * Patients have severe primary cardiovascular disease, lung disease, endocrine and metabolic disease or serious diseases that affect their survival, such as tumor or AIDS, the researchers believe that it is not suitable to be selected. * Patients have severe liver, kidney and hematological lesions, such as kidney function exceeding the upper limit of normal value and liver function exceeding 2 times the upper limit of normal value. * Patients have viral hepatitis, infectious diseases, severe abnormalities in blood coagulation and other diseases that the researchers consider unsuitable for surgery. * Women who are pregnant or lactating, or who plan to conceive during follow-up, those who are positive for human chorionic gonadotropin before sampling; menstrual women should wait for surgery after the end of menstruation. * Patients have severe neurological and mental disorders. * Patients suspect or do have a history of alcohol or drug abuse. * Patients have height body mass index (BMI) \> 30. * Patients have tendon disease caused by systemic immune or other diseases, and patients with diseases or symptoms that may affect pain or function scores. * Patients have coagulation disorders caused by any other acute or chronic disease. * MRI detection of contraindications. Include, but are not limited to: installation of pacemakers, defibrillators, cardiac stents, artificial heart valves, metal clips after aneurysm surgery, drug infusion devices implanted in the body, any electronic devices implanted in the body (nerve stimulators, bone growth stimulators), endovascular embolization steel rings, filters, ECG recording monitors, metal sutures, shrapnel or iron particles in the body, fixation of steel plates and nails after fracture surgery, Cochlear implant, middle ear graft, intraocular metal foreign body, etc. Claustrophobia, critically ill patients, etc. * Refer to the April 2008 edition of the Law of the people's Republic of China on the Protection of disabled Persons, patients belong to the subjects of legal disabled persons * Other situations in which the researchers judged that the subjects were not suitable to participate.
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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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2nd Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University
Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310058, China
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Ultrasound stiffness scans put tendon pain under the microscope
- Can collagen shots around the heel tendon speed recovery?
- Can a Stomach-Derived peptide help tendons heal faster after surgery?
- Which injection eases arm pain better: steroid or Anti-Inflammatory?
- Can a patch make torn shoulder tendons heal stronger?
- Blood-derived injections may mend torn shoulder tendons without surgery