Virtual Reality Intervention in Patients With Persistent Shoulder Pain

Summary

Shoulder pain is very common and can make daily activities difficult. Many people have shoulder pain for a long time, even after treatment. Common shoulder problems include pain from the shoulder muscles and tendons, a frozen shoulder, or an unstable shoulder. Unfortunately, both surgery and physiotherapy often help only a little. This can be due to many reasons, such as people not continuing their exercises, fear of moving the shoulder, incorrect beliefs about pain, other health problems, or lifestyle factors.

Virtual Reality (VR) is a new and promising technology that is already being used to help people with long-lasting pain. By using a VR headset, people can exercise in a motivating and engaging virtual environment. VR may help reduce fear of movement, improve how people feel about their body, make movement easier, and help people stick to their exercises. However, there is still very little research on using VR for long-lasting shoulder pain.

The goal of this study is to find out whether a home-based VR exercise program for people with ongoing shoulder complaints is practical and acceptable. The investigators want to know if people are willing and able to use VR at home, whether they continue the treatment, and whether it shows early signs of reducing pain and limitations. They also want to understand who benefits most from VR, in which situations it works best, and why it may or may not help.

People aged 16 years and older who have had shoulder pain and limitations for more than three months can take part. This includes people with shoulder tendon-related pain, frozen shoulder, or shoulder instability.

The study lasts six weeks and includes three parts. First, participants receive online educational videos about shoulder pain and movement. Second, they take part in three physiotherapy sessions: one in person and two online. Third, participants use a VR headset at home every day for about 15 minutes to perform guided shoulder and whole-body exercises, such as reaching or aiming tasks. The exercises gradually become more challenging. Participants receive clear written and video instructions, and technical support is available if needed.

During the study, participants will complete questionnaires and the VR system will record basic usage data. At the end of the study, group interviews will be held with participants and physiotherapists to talk about their experiences with VR and how it influenced pain, movement, and daily activities.

Using VR is considered safe. Some people may experience mild and short-lasting side effects, such as dizziness, but serious problems are not expected. The main effort for participants is the time spent on exercises and completing questionnaires.

The results of this study will help determine whether VR is a useful and realistic treatment option for people with long-lasting shoulder pain and will guide future, larger studies.

Conditions

• Rotator Cuff Syndrome
• Shoulder Instability
• Frozen Shoulder

Interventions

OTHER

Exercise with Virtual reality

Participants exercise their shoulder at home with a VR headset, provided by the research team. The physiotherapist explains how to use the headset and wich applicatiosn should be used at which level. participants exercise daily 10 minutes for six weeks.

OTHER

education on shoulder pain

participants receive a video-clip of 3 minutes that explains their shoulder condition.

OTHER

simulation de-briefing

During the physiotherapy conultation, participants will be video-recorded with their own mobile device, when moving within VR. After thtat, the phyiotherapist and participant engage in a simulation de-briefing, discussing how it felt to move within VR, any changes in perceptions on pain and movement are discussed as well as the transfer to other movements in daily life.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research

  collaborator OTHER_GOV

• HAN University of Applied Sciences

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Bart Staal, PhD · HAN University of Applied Sciences

Study Design

Allocation

NA

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Model

SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Min Age

16 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2026-01-12

Primary Completion

2026-10-01

Completion

2026-12-01

Countries

• Netherlands

Study Locations