Neck or shoulder? Establishing consensus for spine screening in patients with shoulder pain: an international modified Delphi study

Review written by Todd Hargrove info

Key Points

  1. Spinal impairments sometimes contribute to shoulder pain, but there is no established consensus for when the spine should be screened in patients with shoulder pain.
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BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVE

Shoulder pain is a very common musculoskeletal disorder; it ranks third after low back and neck pain (1). Spinal impairments may cause or contribute to shoulder pain, but there is no established consensus for screening the spine in patients with shoulder pain.

This study assembled a panel of experts to reach consensus on a variety of points related to this issue.

Shoulder pain is a very common musculoskeletal disorder; it ranks third after low back and neck pain.
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In this study, experts agreed that the spine should only be screened in cases where the clinical presentation points to spinal involvement.

METHODS

  • This study sought to establish consensus about shoulder pain treatment by using the Delphi Method. This involves asking experts to indicate their level of agreement with a series of statements, according to a five-point scale.
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