Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34276924›Full record

ReviewTherapeutic advances in chronic disease2021

Are muscle weakness and stiffness risk factors of the development of rotator cuff tendinopathy in overhead athletes: a systematic review.

Cheuk-Kin Kwan, Man-Chi Ko, Sai-Chuen Fu, Hio-Teng Leong, Samuel Ka-Kin Ling, Joo-Han Oh, Patrick Shu-Hang Yung

Registry-linked trialOpen access · goldAbstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Therapeutic advances in chronic disease, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT07645963 (Effects of Myofascial Trigger Point Release Versus Neil Asher Technique on Pain, Range of Motion, and Disability in Patients With Rotator Cuff Syndrome), which is not on this map. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed
2.1field-weighted citation impact, top 13% 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.

NCT07645963 nanot yet recruitingnot on this mapstarted 2026, after this paper: background citation

Effects of Myofascial Trigger Point Release Versus Neil Asher Technique on Pain, Range of Motion, and Disability in Patients With Rotator Cuff Syndrome

TypeinterventionalSponsorRiphah International UniversityRan2026 to 2026Enrolled36ConditionsRotator Cuff SyndromeArmsMyofascial Trigger Point Release (MFTR)+ conservative physiotherapy Group, Neil Asher Technique (NAT) + conservative physiotherapy Group
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed, 13 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. Assessment of Rotator Cuff External Rotation: Isometric vs. Isotonic Testing Modes.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2026
    Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.

Cheuk-Kin KwanDepartment of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Man-Chi KoDepartment of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Sai-Chuen FuDepartment of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Hio-Teng LeongDepartment of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Samuel Ka-Kin LingDepartment of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Joo-Han OhDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Republic of Korea.
Patrick Shu-Hang YungDepartment of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, 30-32 Ngan Shing Street, Shatin, NT, Hong Kong.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7214-5503
Chinese University of Hong Kong · HKSeoul National University Bundang Hospital · KR

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundUnderlying muscle weakness and stiffness may increase the risk of developing rotator cuff tendinopathy. This systematic review aims to assess existing prospective studies to summarize whether muscle weakness and stiffness are risk factors for the development of rotator cuff tendinopathy in overhead athletes.

methodsA systematic search was performed using PRISMA guidelines. Prospective studies measuring muscle strength or stiffness and the incidence of rotator cuff tendinopathy were included. Quality assessment was performed with the Newcastle-Ottawa quality assessment scale.

resultsThe search yielded six studies, with a total of 523 trained overhead athletes followed up for one season. External rotation (ER) and internal rotation (IR) strength were described as protective factors against the development of rotator cuff tendinopathy. Athletes who did not sustain shoulder injuries had statistically stronger eccentric IR (

conclusionLimited evidence support ER, IR weakness, limited ER range of motion, and very limited evidence support imbalance in ER/IR strength, and supraspinatus weakness as risk factors for rotator cuff tendinopathy in overhead athletes. No existing studies investigated the general population on this topic. Future cohort studies may improve on existing evidence with investigations on the general public, a longer follow-up time, clearly documented injury history, and a stringent diagnosis to rotator cuff tendinopathy.

Indexed as

muscle stiffnessmuscle weaknessrisksrotator cuffsystematic reviewtendinopathy

Identifiers

PMID34276924
PMCPMC8255557
OpenAlexW3180821427

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

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.