NCT07187336

The Efficacy and Safety of Shoulder Motion Style Acupuncture Treatment (MSAT) on in Patients With Shoulder Pain Caused by Traffic Accidents

The Efficacy and Safety of Shoulder Motion Style Acupuncture Treatment (MSAT) on in Patients With Shoulder Pain Caused by Traffic Accidents: A Pragmatic Randomized Controlled Trial

• Status: Recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 98 (estimated)
• Sponsor: Jaseng Medical Foundation · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 19 Years – 70 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

This study will test the effectiveness and safety of Motion Style Acupuncture Treatment (MSAT) for shoulder pain caused by traffic accidents. About 98 hospitalized patients with acute shoulder pain after a traffic accident will take part. Participants will be randomly assigned to one of two groups: MSAT + integrative Korean medicine group (acupuncture, herbal medicine, pharmacopuncture, Chuna therapy, plus MSAT), or Integrative Korean medicine only group (acupuncture, herbal medicine, pharmacopuncture, Chuna therapy). MSAT involves inserting needles into the shoulder area and gently moving the joint to improve pain relief and mobility. All treatments used in this study are standard care in Korean medicine. The main outcomes are pain reduction, shoulder movement, daily function, quality of life, and patient satisfaction. Safety will also be monitored by recording any side effects such as temporary soreness, bruising, or discomfort. Treatment will be provided during hospitalization (up to 5 days), and patients will be followed up by phone at 2 weeks and 1 month after enrollment. The results of this trial will help determine whether adding MSAT to standard integrative Korean medicine treatment provides greater benefit for patients with acute shoulder pain after traffic accidents.

Detailed description

This pragmatic randomized controlled trial is designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of Motion Style Acupuncture Treatment (MSAT) for acute shoulder pain resulting from traffic accidents. Shoulder injuries after motor vehicle accidents often cause pain, restricted range of motion, and functional limitations. While integrative Korean medicine treatments such as acupuncture, pharmacopuncture, Chuna manual therapy, and herbal medicine are commonly used, there is limited high-quality evidence regarding the additional benefits of MSAT for shoulder conditions. MSAT is a therapeutic technique in which acupuncture needles are inserted into affected areas while the practitioner guides or assists the patient's shoulder movements. This combined approach aims to enhance the analgesic and functional effects of acupuncture. In this trial, 98 inpatients with acute shoulder pain following a traffic accident will be randomized equally into two groups. One group will receive integrative Korean medicine plus MSAT, and the other will receive integrative Korean medicine alone. MSAT will be performed once daily for three sessions during hospitalization (days 2-4), while both groups will continue standard integrative treatments. The study will assess clinical effectiveness through changes in shoulder pain intensity, range of motion, functional status, quality of life, and patient global impression of change. Safety will be evaluated by monitoring adverse events during treatment and follow-up. By comparing outcomes between the two groups, this study aims to provide evidence on whether MSAT offers additional benefit beyond integrative Korean medicine for patients with acute shoulder pain after traffic accidents. The findings are expected to contribute to establishing clinical guidance for safe and effective use of MSAT in real-world practice.

Conditions

• Shoulder Pain

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
PROCEDURE	Shoulder MSAT Group	Shoulder Motion Style Acupuncture Treatment (MSAT) involves inserting acupuncture needles into specific points around the shoulder joint, then guiding or assisting the patient's shoulder movements while the needles remain in place. This combined technique is intended to maximize acupuncture effects by stimulating both the needles and the joint motion. In this study, MSAT will be performed once daily for three consecutive days (hospital days 2-4), in addition to standard integrative Korean medicine treatment (acupuncture, pharmacopuncture, Chuna manual therapy, and herbal medicine). Each MSAT session lasts about 10-20 minutes. This distinguishes the intervention from the comparator arm, which receives integrative Korean medicine treatment only, without MSAT.
PROCEDURE	Integrative Korean Medicine Only Group	Participants in this group receive only standard integrative Korean medicine treatments, without MSAT. Treatments include acupuncture (6-10 points, 15-20 minutes per session), pharmacopuncture (injection of herbal extracts at acupuncture points), Chuna manual therapy (10-15 minutes daily), and herbal medicine (oral decoction extracts taken twice daily). This arm serves as the comparator to distinguish the additional effects of MSAT, since both groups receive the same integrative Korean medicine but only the experimental arm includes Shoulder MSAT.

Timeline

• Start date: 2025-11-02
• Primary completion: 2026-05-30
• Completion: 2026-09-30
• First posted: 2025-09-23
• Last updated: 2026-03-09

Locations

1 site across 1 country: South Korea