Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32606899›Full record

Trial reportJournal of pain research2020

Low-Intensity Continuous Ultrasound for the Symptomatic Treatment of Upper Shoulder and Neck Pain: A Randomized, Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial.

Stephanie Petterson, Kevin Plancher, Dominic Klyve, David Draper, Ralph Ortiz

Erratum issuedOpen access · goldAbstract readCase ReportsClinical Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Journal of pain research, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 19 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
19citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
2.1field-weighted citation impact, top 14% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

19 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 25 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Comparative effectiveness of six biophysical agents on neck pain rehabilitation: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2025
    Pooled it
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  4. Long Duration Ultrasound: Recent Advancements and Clinical Applications.International journal on physical medication & rehabilitation · 2025
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  7. Effects of wearable low-intensity continuous ultrasound on muscle biomechanical properties during delayed onset muscle soreness.Technology and health care : official journal of the European Society for Engineering and Medicine · 2024
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  9. Review
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.

Stephanie PettersonOrthopaedic Foundation, Stamford, CT, USA.
Kevin PlancherPlancher Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine, New York, NY 10128, USA.
Dominic KlyveDepartment of Mathematics, Central Washington University, Ellensburg, WI, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-4424-3130
David DraperDepartment of Exercise Sciences, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT, USA.
Ralph OrtizMedical Pain Consultants, Dryden, NY, USA.
Brigham Young University · USCentral Washington University · USPain Management Institute · USPlano Orthopedic Sports Medicine & Spine Center · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeLow-intensity continuous ultrasound (LICUS) is an emerging high-dosimetry ultrasound-based therapy for accelerated tissue healing and the treatment of myofascial pain. In this study, LICUS treatment is clinically evaluated for chronic upper neck and shoulder pain in a randomized, multi-site, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. PATIENTS AND

methodsCONSORT guidelines were followed in conducting and reporting the clinical trial. Thirty-three participants with upper trapezius myofascial pain were randomized for treatment with active (n=25) or placebo (n=8) devices. Investigators and subjects were blinded to treatment groups. Participants self-reported pain daily, rating from 0-10 on the numeric rating scale. If pain rating was more significant than or equal to 3, the LICUS (3MHz, 0.132W/cm

resultsThere was a 100% completion rate for participants enrolled in the study and no significant differences between the groups regarding demographic variables or baseline outcome measures. Participants treated with active therapy observed a significant mean pain reduction from baseline of 2.61 points for active (p<0.001), compared to 1.58 points decrease from baseline for placebo (p=0.087), resulting in a 1.03 points significant decrease in the active group over placebo (p=0.003). The total GROC was significantly higher in the active group at 2.84 points compared to the placebo group at 0.46 points (p<0.001).

conclusionLow-intensity continuous ultrasound treatment significantly reduced pain in patients with upper trapezius myofascial pain of the neck and shoulder. LICUS treatment showed a clinically meaningful improvement in the GROC scores for patients. The results from this clinical trial indicate that the LICUS treatment of 18,720 Joules can effectively be used to treat clinical pain related to upper trapezius myofascial pain. Further research could investigate varying dosimetry to improve efficacy and/or reduce the dose.

Indexed as

chronic musculoskeletal painmyofascial trigger pointsnon-invasive therapynon-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugsNSAIDssoft tissue healingsustained acoustic medicine

Identifiers

PMID32606899
PMCPMC7287226
OpenAlexW3030960028

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.