Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34185226›Full record

SynthesisQuality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation2022

Efficacy of physical therapy interventions on quality of life and upper quadrant pain severity in women with post-mastectomy pain syndrome: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Priya Kannan, Hiu Ying Lam, Tsz Kiu Ma, Chiu Ngai Lo, Ting Yan Mui, Wing Yan Tang

Erratum issuedOpen access · hybridAbstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Quality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation, 2022. 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, 7 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
19citing papers in PubMed, 7 pooled it
3.1field-weighted citation impact, top 9% 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, 7 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 31 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Guideline
  2. The healing power of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation: a systematic review on its effects after breast surgery.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2025
    Pooled it
  3. Pooled it
  4. Pooled it
  5. Pooled it
  6. The role of exercise for pain management in adults living with and beyond cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2023
    Pooled it
  7. Pooled it
  8. Trial
  9. Article
  10. Article
  11. Article
  12. Article
  13. Review
  14. Postmastectomy Functional Impairments.Current oncology reports · 2023
    Review
  15. Review
  16. Review
  17. Review
  18. Review
  19. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Priya KannanDepartment of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong. priya.kannan@polyu.edu.hk.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2583-9614
Hiu Ying LamDepartment of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong.
Tsz Kiu MaDepartment of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong.
Chiu Ngai LoDepartment of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong.
Ting Yan MuiDepartment of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong.
Wing Yan TangDepartment of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong.
Hong Kong Polytechnic University · HK

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeTo determine the efficacy of physical therapy interventions on quality of life (QoL) and pain severity in post-mastectomy pain syndrome (PMPS).

methodsMultiple databases were searched from database inception to October 2020. Searches were limited to human studies published in either English or Chinese in peer-reviewed journals with full text available for randomized controlled trials conducted on females. Trials comparing the effectiveness of physical therapy interventions against control conditions on QoL and pain were included.

resultsEighteen trials were included in the review. The pooled analysis of the four exercise trials revealed a significant effect of the intervention on general [standardized mean difference [SMD]: 0.87 (95%CI: 0.36, 1.37); p = 0.001], physical [SMD: 0.34 (95%CI: 0.01, 0.66); p = 0.044], and mental health components [SMD: 0.27 (95%CI: 0.03, 0.51); p = 0.027] of QoL compared with the control condition. Meta-analyses of six exercise trials, two myofascial release trials, and two acupuncture trials revealed a significant improvement in pain severity in the treatment group than in the control group. However, meta-analyses of two studies revealed a non-significant effect of compression therapy compared to control on pain severity.

conclusionOur meta-analyses found that exercise is beneficial for improving the QoL and pain severity of women with PMPS. Future studies are needed to determine the optimal parameters for exercise interventions designed to improve QoL and pain severity in women with PMPS. The effect of acupuncture, myofascial release, and compression therapy remains inconclusive, and future research is required to validate the effect of these interventions on PMPS.

Indexed as

Breast NeoplasmsChronic PainFemaleHumansMastectomyPain MeasurementPhysical Therapy ModalitiesQuality of LifeAcupunctureDecongestive therapyExercisePost-mastectomy pain syndromeQuality of Life

Identifiers

PMID34185226
PMCPMC8960660
OpenAlexW3175180590

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

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.