Efficacy of Cervical Proprioceptive Exercises in Treating Shoulder Impingement Syndrome

Study design: This study will be randomized controlled trial 1. Participants: fifty males and females patients with functional shoulder impingement, aged from 25-40 years with BMI <32kg/m2. Sample size calculation: The sample size is 50 patients in the 2 experimental groups based on power analysis done calculating effect size from outcomes of previous study (effect size d of 0.82 for shoulder proprioception) . Power analysis was done using G*power software. Power set to (0.8), significance (0.05). Procedture: First, eligible patients will have the purpose of the study and the procedures fully explained. Then, patients will be asked to participate in the study. If they accepted, an informed consent form will be signed and randomly assigned in one of two groups. Afterwards Prior to starting of the study each patient will sign informed consent Patients will be assigned to two groups randomly (by closed envelope method). All subjects will be evaluated for their shoulder pain, disability level, and proprioception. All patients will be tested before and after the treatment program (12 treatment sessions, 3 sessions per week for 4 weeks) Conventional Physical therapy: a. Cross-body stretch b. Sleeper stretch. c. Prone extension with an externally rotated (thumb out) position d. Prone horizontal abduction e. PNF D2 flexion For intervention group it will take Cervical proprioceptive training Retraining joint position sense will be done with a laser pointer. The laser pointer will fixed on the highest point of the subject head with a band. In this exercise, patients sit upright on a chair and kept their head at the neutral position while setting the laser light at the point on the wall in front of them. From this position, patients will be asked to flex, extend and rotate their head and then return to the neutral position. This training commenced with open eyes and then progress with closed eyes, tracing a pattern and standing position . Temporary reproduction of dizziness is acceptable however exacerbation of neck pain or headache is not acceptable. If this occurs the exercises should be modified by decreasing the number of repetitions or altering the patient position to a more supported position. Progression of exercise set can be achieved by altering the duration, repetitions and the degree of difficulty of the task. Exercises can also be progressed by performing activities such as an eye task or cervical JPS practice while sitting on an unstable surface or while standing with the feet in an unstable base of support for example, heel toe stance, or while walking .