LEVEL OF PAIN AND DISABILITY AMONG PATIENTS WITH FROZEN SHOULDER
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.71000/w9efzm50Keywords:
Activities of Daily Living; Adhesive Capsulitis; Functional Status; Pain Measurement; Shoulder Pain; Surveys and QuestionnairesAbstract
Background: Frozen shoulder is characterized by painful restriction of active and passive shoulder movement and can substantially limit activities of daily living. Quantifying symptom severity with a standardized patient-reported outcome measure can help characterize the clinical burden of the condition.
Objective: To determine the level of pain and disability among patients with frozen shoulder.
Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional observational study was conducted over six months following synopsis approval at the physiotherapy departments of Services Hospital Lahore and Jinnah Hospital Lahore. A non-probability purposive sample of 185 male and female patients aged 22–75 years with frozen shoulder related to pathological conditions was enrolled; patients with trauma, diabetes, or post-surgical stiffness were excluded. Pain and disability were assessed using the 13-item Shoulder Pain and Disability Index (SPADI). Data were analyzed descriptively in SPSS version 25 using frequencies, percentages, means, and standard deviations.
Results: The mean age was 45.12 ± 13.12 years and 102 participants (55.1%) were female. Chronic onset was reported in 102 (55.1%) participants. The reported mean SPADI pain-domain score was 69.84 ± 10.19 and the disability-domain score was 68.06 ± 8.70. Pain severity was classified as no pain in 13 (7.0%), mild in 36 (19.5%), moderate in 63 (34.1%), and severe in 73 (39.5%) participants. Disability was mild in 44 (23.8%), moderate in 81 (43.8%), and severe in 60 (32.4%) participants. Thus, 136/185 (73.5%) had moderate-to-severe pain and 141/185 (76.2%) had moderate-to-severe disability.
Conclusion: Patients with frozen shoulder in this clinical sample had a substantial burden of pain and functional limitation. Severe pain was the most frequent pain category, whereas moderate disability was the most frequent disability category, supporting routine assessment of both symptom domains in rehabilitation practice.
Keywords: Activities of Daily Living; Adhesive Capsulitis; Functional Status; Pain Measurement; Shoulder Pain; Surveys and Questionnaires
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Copyright (c) 2025 Haris Imtiaz, Dr. Muhammad Umar, Ezza Fiaz, Usman Ahmed, Ayesha Majeed, Feroz Jamil, Shifa Naeem, Dr. Zohaib Khan (Author)
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