Short-Term Outcomes After Corticosteroid Injection in Patients with Clinically Diagnosed Subacromial Pain Suggestive of Bursitis
- 1Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Icahn School of Medicine, Mount Sinai, 1468 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10029, USA
- 2Medical Faculty Heidelberg, Heidelberg University, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
Abstract
Background: The current diagnostic paradigm for clinically suspected subacromial bursitis is based on clinical history and physical examination. However, clinical signs frequently overlap with other pathologies. This study investigated short-term outcomes following the currently employed clinical criteria by comparing patients who met these criteria and received an injection with those who were offered but refused an injection. Methods: From July 2024 to April 2025, patients with symptoms of clinically suspected subacromial bursitis were enrolled and offered a corticosteroid injection. Patients were grouped based on whether they agreed to and received an injection or not. Range of motion (ROM) and patient-reported outcomes (PROs) were collected at the initial visit and Visual Analog Scale (VAS), Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation (SANE), and Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) questionnaire scores were collected using questionnaires emailed 2 weeks after the initial visit. This was a prospective, non-randomized observational study with treatment determined by patient preference. VAS and DASH were the primary outcomes. Results: 98 patients were enrolled and 73 patients received a corticosteroid injection. Follow-up PROs were completed by 47 injection patients and 18 non-injected patients. For injection patients, VAS scores improved from 5.3 ± 2.5 to 3.8 ± 2.8 (p < 0.001), and DASH scores improved from 42.2 ± 17.7 to 27.0 ± 21.7 (p < 0.001). Patients without injection also improved in VAS (5.1 ± 2.7 to 3.9 ± 2.7, p = 0.015) and DASH scores (38.3 ± 23.8 to 27.0 ± 18.8, p = 0.006). Between-group differences in changes in VAS, DASH, and affected-side SANE scores were not statistically significant (p = 0.661, p = 0.405, and p = 0.512, respectively). Conclusions: No statistically significant differences in pain or affected-shoulder function between groups were detected at approximately 2 weeks in this small, non-randomized study. These findings do not establish equivalence or determine whether clinical criteria identify patients who benefit from injection. Further studies should assess whether clinical and imaging findings improve patient selection.
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BibTeX
@article{schroen2026shortterm,
title = {{Short-Term Outcomes After Corticosteroid Injection in Patients with Clinically Diagnosed Subacromial Pain Suggestive of Bursitis}},
author = {Christoph A. Schroen and Alexander Yu and Akiro H. Duey and Sri Guttikonda and Michael Li and Richard Hausman and Jordan Bernstein and William A. Ranson and Michael R. Hausman and Paul J. Cagle},
journal = {Journal of Clinical Medicine},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/jcm15207863},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/15/20/7863},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Short-Term Outcomes After Corticosteroid Injection in Patients with Clinically Diagnosed Subacromial Pain Suggestive of Bursitis
AU - Christoph A. Schroen
AU - Alexander Yu
AU - Akiro H. Duey
AU - Sri Guttikonda
AU - Michael Li
AU - Richard Hausman
AU - Jordan Bernstein
AU - William A. Ranson
AU - Michael R. Hausman
AU - Paul J. Cagle
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - Journal of Clinical Medicine
DO - 10.3390/jcm15207863
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/15/20/7863
AB - Background: The current diagnostic paradigm for clinically suspected subacromial bursitis is based on clinical history and physical examination. However, clinical signs frequently overlap with other pathologies. This study investigated short-term outcomes following the currently employed clinical criteria by comparing patients who met these criteria and received an injection with those who were offered but refused an injection. Methods: From July 2024 to April 2025, patients with symptoms of clinically suspected subacromial bursitis were enrolled and offered a corticosteroid injection. Patients were grouped based on whether they agreed to and received an injection or not. Range of motion (ROM) and patient-reported outcomes (PROs) were collected at the initial visit and Visual Analog Scale (VAS), Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation (SANE), and Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) questionnaire scores were collected using questionnaires emailed 2 weeks after the initial visit. This was a prospective, non-randomized observational study with treatment determined by patient preference. VAS and DASH were the primary outcomes. Results: 98 patients were enrolled and 73 patients received a corticosteroid injection. Follow-up PROs were completed by 47 injection patients and 18 non-injected patients. For injection patients, VAS scores improved from 5.3 ± 2.5 to 3.8 ± 2.8 (p < 0.001), and DASH scores improved from 42.2 ± 17.7 to 27.0 ± 21.7 (p < 0.001). Patients without injection also improved in VAS (5.1 ± 2.7 to 3.9 ± 2.7, p = 0.015) and DASH scores (38.3 ± 23.8 to 27.0 ± 18.8, p = 0.006). Between-group differences in changes in VAS, DASH, and affected-side SANE scores were not statistically significant (p = 0.661, p = 0.405, and p = 0.512, respectively). Conclusions: No statistically significant differences in pain or affected-shoulder function between groups were detected at approximately 2 weeks in this small, non-randomized study. These findings do not establish equivalence or determine whether clinical criteria identify patients who benefit from injection. Further studies should assess whether clinical and imaging findings improve patient selection.
SN - 2077-0383
ER -