Objective: To systematically scope the reported advice and education in physical therapy management of patients with subacromial shoulder pain, and to define key themes of the advice and education.
Design: Scoping review.
Literature search: We searched MEDLINE, Scopus, Web of Science, and CINAHL, with publication dates from 2007 to September 2019.
Study selection criteria: We included quantitative and qualitative research that reported on physical therapy interventions for subacromial shoulder pain.
Data synthesis: We performed a qualitative synthesis that identified items included in patient advice and education.
Results: Of 89 original studies included, there were 61 randomized controlled trials; 5 prospective studies; 16 nonrandomized observational intervention studies or case series; and 7 surveys, audits of physical therapy patient records, and focus groups with physical therapists. We identified 7 key themes for advice and education: exercise intensity and pain response, activity modification advice, posture advice, pain self-management advice, pathoanatomical and diagnosis information, behavioral approaches, and pain biology advice.
Conclusion: While advice focused predominantly on the local tissue pathology model, 10% of studies included information about pain neuroscience education, psychosocial factors, motor imagery, or behavior change. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 2020;50(6):285-293. doi:10.2519/jospt.2020.9152.
Keywords: advice; patient education; rotator cuff; shoulder pain.