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- Issue 104
- Patients’ perceptions of the causes and…
Patients’ perceptions of the causes and treatments for rotator cuff-related shoulder pain: a content analysis of patient responses and implications for clinician communication
Key Points
- Patients with rotator cuff-related shoulder pain predominantly perceive their symptoms through a biomedical lens, attributing pain to structural damage, overuse, or injury, while psychosocial contributors are rarely recognized.
BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVE
Rotator cuff-related shoulder pain (RCRSP) is an umbrella term encompassing multiple pathologies such as rotator cuff tendinopathy / partial and/or age-related changes, calcific tendinopathies and subacromial pain syndrome. RCRSP is the most common shoulder pain presentation, accounting for over 85% of shoulder complaints presenting to primary care (1).
Clinical guidelines for this cohort recommend a period of three to six months of non-surgical management, including exercise and activity modification, before considering imaging or surgery (2). Despite this, patients often receive varying and potentially conflicting information from healthcare providers, since beliefs about the cause of pain can influence patient treatment preferences and health-seeking behaviors. Therefore, understanding what patients believe about shoulder pain is clinically valuable.
The aim of this study was to explore patients’ perceptions of the causes of RCRSP and the best treatment options, based on advice they recalled from their healthcare professionals.
The findings reinforce the importance of delivering consistent, evidence-based education regarding the multifactorial nature of shoulder pain.
METHODS
- This study was a content analysis of a subset of qualitative data collected as part of a large online randomized controlled experiment investigating the impact of different educational interventions for individuals with RCRSP.