In many instances , no or minimal attempts to screen were undertaken or reported .
Background Subacromial shoulder pain is a common clinical presentation with much diagnostic uncertainty .
Some of this uncertainty relates to the involvement of the cervical spine as a source or contribution to subacromial shoulder pain .
Currently , there is no accepted method of screening of the cervical spine in the presence of subacromial shoulder pain , which risks patients receiving misguided and /or ineffective interventions .
Objective To evaluate approaches used to screen the cervical spine in patients with subacromial shoulder pain .
Low-level laser therapy in subacromial impingement syndrome.
BACKGROUND DATA AND OBJECTIVE Although previous studies have evaluated the effect of different kinds of physical therapy in subacromial impingement syndrome ( SIS ) , there have been few investigations assessing the effectiveness of low-level laser therapy ( LLLT ) in shoulder disorders . The goal of this prospect i ve r and omized study was to assess whether gallium-arsenide ( Ga-As ) laser therapy improves the outcome of a comprehensive home exercise program in patients with SIS . MATERIAL S AND METHODS Forty-four newly-diagnosed SIS patients were enrolled in this study . Group 1 patients ( n = 22 ) received Ga-As laser therapy combined with a 12-wk comprehensive home exercise program , and group 2 patients ( n = 22 ) received the same 12-wk comprehensive home exercise program alone .  Night pain , shoulder pain and disability index ( SPADI ) , and University of California-Los Angeles end- result ( UCLA ) scores were used as outcome measures . RESULTS Both groups showed a significant reduction in night pain and SPADI scores at the second and 12th weeks with respect to baseline values , with the exception of the SPADI total score at the second week in group 1 . UCLA results improved significantly in both groups at the 12th in comparison to the second week . There were no significant differences between groups in mean actual changes in night pain and SPADI scores at the second week from baseline . When values at the 12th week were compared to baseline , mean actual changes in night pain differed significantly between the groups , with a larger change in group 1 , but there was no difference between groups in mean actual change in SPADI scores . Second- and 12th-week UCLA scores did not differ between the two groups . CONCLUSION Our study was unable to demonstrate any distinct advantage of low-level laser therapy over exercise alone . Comprehensive home exercise programs should be the primary therapeutic option in the rehabilitation process in SIS
In many instances , no or minimal attempts to screen were undertaken or reported .
Background Subacromial shoulder pain is a common clinical presentation with much diagnostic uncertainty .
Some of this uncertainty relates to the involvement of the cervical spine as a source or contribution to subacromial shoulder pain .
Currently , there is no accepted method of screening of the cervical spine in the presence of subacromial shoulder pain , which risks patients receiving misguided and /or ineffective interventions .
Objective To evaluate approaches used to screen the cervical spine in patients with subacromial shoulder pain .