Effects of traditional and functional exercises on pain and maximal voluntary contraction in patients with shoulder impingement syndrome

Therapeutic exercise is one of the methods to reduce pain and to strengthen muscles in patients with shoulder impingement syndrome. There are many exercise protocol for shoulder rehabilitation. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of two exercise regimen (traditional vs functional) on pain and maximal voluntary contraction (MVIC) of shoulder muscles.Subjects and Measures: 24 men and women (mean age: 18-50) with shoulder impingement syndrome were randomly assigned to one of two exercise groups. MVIC of shoulder muscles (pectoralis major, upper trapezius, middle trapezius, infraspinatus, anterior, middle and posterior deltoid) by surface electromyography and pain assessed during before and after four week treatment. In both groups resting pain was reduced after treatment (P<.000). There was no significant difference between two groups (P<.007). MVIC force of all shoulder muscles increased after treatment in both groups (P<.05). There was no significant difference between two groups except for pectoralis major muscle that had more MVIC force in functional group(P<.006).Pain reduction after therapeutic exercise was associated with an improved MVIC force in both groups but there was more reduction in pain and increase in MVIC in the kinetic chain group than the traditional.