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Open research questions in Shoulder Injury and Treatment

311 unresolved questions extracted from the limitations and future-work sections of 1,160 Shoulder Injury and Treatment papers in our library. Each links back to the study that raised it.

What the literature leaves open

  • Substantial baseline imbalance between the intervention and control groups. The lack of blinding for participants and treating personnel. The absence of assessor blinding for outcome assessment.

    Low-Supervision Asynchronously Monitored Home Rehabilitation for Adhesive Capsulitis: A Pilot Randomized Study · 2026 · DOI

  • The lack of effective and supervised home rehabilitation programs for adhesive capsulitis. The difficulty in documenting home exercise objectively. No other specific gaps are mentioned.

    Low-Supervision Asynchronously Monitored Home Rehabilitation for Adhesive Capsulitis: A Pilot Randomized Study · 2026 · DOI

  • The study had a limited sample size - The study's limited sensitivity to moderate or smaller effects - Protocol-specific measurement error could not be quantified

    Do patients with non-traumatic rotator cuff tears differ from healthy individuals in forward head posture, rounded shoulder posture, and thoracic kyphosis? · 2026 · DOI

  • The study identifies a gap in understanding the relationship between non-traumatic rotator cuff tears and static postural changes. There is a need to investigate whether patients with non-traumatic rotator cuff tears show consistent static postural changes.

    Do patients with non-traumatic rotator cuff tears differ from healthy individuals in forward head posture, rounded shoulder posture, and thoracic kyphosis? · 2026 · DOI

  • Large-scale investigations are needed to confirm these findings and inform clinical translation, - Further studies should evaluate the accuracy of the Azure Kinect in different movement planes

    Validation of Azure Kinect for upper limb kinematic assessment after arthroscopic rotator cuff repair: task-dependent accuracy and postoperative overestimation · 2026 · DOI

  • Postoperative functional evaluation relies heavily on subjective clinical scales. There is a lack of objective kinematic assessment tools for upper limb movement after arthroscopic rotator cuff repair. The current tools for postoperative functional movement assessment have limitations.

    Validation of Azure Kinect for upper limb kinematic assessment after arthroscopic rotator cuff repair: task-dependent accuracy and postoperative overestimation · 2026 · DOI

  • Although side-to-side differences in HRT, known as relative HRT (rHRT), have been linked to MUCL injury, the relationship between rHRT and glenohumeral rotational range of motion (ROM) in injured athletes is not well defined.

    The Relationship between Relative Humeral Retrotorsion and Clinical Outcomes in Baseball Athletes with a Medial Ulnar Collateral Ligament Injury · 2026 · DOI

  • In contrast, augmentation and superior capsular reconstruction showed substantial variability, with most statements failing to reach consensus, with no agreement regarding the optimal graft type, augmentation configuration, or ideal indications for balloons, tuberoplasty, or acromial patching.

    Rotator Cuff Tears Part II: Subscapularis Repair, Augmentation, and Tendon Transfer—An International Expert Consensus Statement · 2026 · DOI

  • Background: Bone loss is an established risk factor for recurrent anterior shoulder instability and failure of isolated arthroscopic Bankart repair; however, its prevalence and clinical significance at initial presentation in adolescents remains poorly characterized.

    Indications for Isolated Arthroscopic Bankart Repair in the Adolescent Shoulder May Be Limited: Bipolar Bone Loss and Low Distance to Dislocation Found Commonly in an Adolescent Population With Glenohumeral Instability · 2026 · DOI

  • Furthermore, there is no consensus regarding the treatment of PHF in older adults requiring long-term care (LTC).

    Treatment and prognosis of proximal humerus fracture in older adults: a retrospective cohort study using health insurance claims database · 2026 · DOI

  • BACKGROUND: The underlying general condition of older adults before proximal humerus fracture (PHF) and outcomes after PHF have not been described in detail.

    Treatment and prognosis of proximal humerus fracture in older adults: a retrospective cohort study using health insurance claims database · 2026 · DOI

  • Whether supplementing scapular stabilization with kinetic‐chain exercises provides greater short‐term benefits remains uncertain.

    Short‐Term Clinical Comparison of Scapular Stabilization With and Without Added Kinetic‐Chain Exercises on Pain, Scapular Kinematics, and Upper‐Extremity Function in Overhead Athletes With Subacromial Pain Syndrome: A Randomized Controlled Trial · 2026 · DOI

  • Guidelines recommend a corticosteroid injection or exercise therapy, but long-term comparative cost-effectiveness remains unclear.

    Cost-effectiveness of a corticosteroid injection versus exercise therapy for shoulder pain in general practice (SIX-Shoulder Study): a randomized controlled trial · 2025 · DOI

  • Findings support nonoperative care as effective at 1 year; longer-term outcomes remain to be studied.

    Casting vs Surgical Treatment of Children With Medial Epicondyle Fractures · 2025 · DOI

  • BACKGROUND: Shoulder pain is common amongst adults, but little is known about patients' preferences.

    Patient preferences for conservative treatment of shoulder pain: a discrete choice experiment · 2024 · DOI

  • A key challenge in RC repair is the healing of tendon-bone interface (TBI), for which bioactive materials suitable for interface repair are still lacking.

    Bioactive Patch for Rotator Cuff Repairing via Enhancing Tendon‐to‐Bone Healing: A Large Animal Study and Short‐Term Outcome of a Clinical Trial · 2024 · DOI

  • However, its association with shoulder function in elderly patients with rotator cuff tears (RCT) remains unknown.

    Low skeletal muscle mass is associated with inferior preoperative and postoperative shoulder function in elderly rotator cuff tear patients · 2024 · DOI

  • Future research can focus on developing more accurate machine learning algorithms. Future research can focus on using larger datasets and more diverse populations.

    Making Sense of Shoulder Exercise: Measuring the Accuracy of an Artificial Intelligence Model to Classify Shoulder Exercise via Wearable Sensors Among People With and Without Rotator Cuff Tendinopathy · 2026 · DOI

  • Tendinopathies are prevalent and have a significant socioeconomic burden. The therapeutic efficacy of high-intensity laser therapy varies across tendon locations. The optimal treatment parameters for high-intensity laser therapy in patients with tendinopathy are unknown.

    Effectiveness of high-intensity laser therapy for tendinopathy: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials · 2026 · DOI

  • Further research is required to elucidate therapeutic efficacy differences of high-intensity laser therapy across various subtypes. The optimal treatment parameters for high-intensity laser therapy in patients with tendinopathy are unknown. The long-term effects of high-intensity laser therapy in patients with tendinopathy are not fully understood.

    Effectiveness of high-intensity laser therapy for tendinopathy: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a need to understand learning curves in arthroscopic surgery to optimize training, patient safety, and early independent practice. The existing evidence on learning curves in arthroscopic surgery is heterogeneous and limited.

    Learning curves in arthroscopic surgery: A scoping review of knee, shoulder, and hip procedures · 2026 · DOI

  • Methodological heterogeneity was identified as a limitation. Limited external validation was noted as a limitation. The study only included studies published in English or Spanish. The study only included studies that used MRI as the primary imaging modality.

    Rendimiento Diagnóstico de la Inteligencia Artificial en la Identificación de Lesiones del Manguito Rotador Mediante Resonancia Magnética: Revisión Sistemática · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a need for prospective, multicenter studies to validate the diagnostic accuracy of AI in shoulder MRI. Methodological heterogeneity and limited external validation are limitations of the current evidence.

    Rendimiento Diagnóstico de la Inteligencia Artificial en la Identificación de Lesiones del Manguito Rotador Mediante Resonancia Magnética: Revisión Sistemática · 2026 · DOI

  • The paper notes that the risk of recurrent dislocation increases significantly as the distance to dislocation approaches 0. The paper also notes that the selection of imaging must be done on a case-by-case basis. The paper highlights the need for patient-specific considerations, including age, level of play, athletic goals, risk of recurrence, and extent of bone loss.

    Managing Shoulder Instability in the Contact and Collision Athlete · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a need for further research on the optimal treatment of shoulder instability in contact and collision athletes. The paper highlights the importance of patient-specific considerations, including age, level of play, athletic goals, risk of recurrence, and extent of bone loss.

    Managing Shoulder Instability in the Contact and Collision Athlete · 2026 · DOI

Most-cited papers in Shoulder Injury and Treatment

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311 open questions have been extracted from the limitations and future-work passages of 1,160 Shoulder Injury and Treatment papers in our library. Each one below links back to the study that raised it, so you can read the original claim in context.

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