To observe the clinical efficacy of Qizheng Xiaotong plasters combined with massage in the treatment of scapulohumeral periarthritis, and to provide evidences for its clinical management.

Two hundred and twenty-five patients with scapulohumeral periarthritis were selected from Massage Department, Guangdong Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine from July 2015 to August 2018. This study was a clinical randomized controlled trial. The patients were randomly divided into an experimental group and a control group by the random number table method. The experimental group had 113 cases, including 43 males and 70 females, and were (51.82±11.63) years old. The control group had 112 cases, including 45 males and 67 females, and were (50.57±12.94) years old. Both groups were massaged to relax their shoulder joint muscles; in addition, the experimental group externally used Qizheng Xiaotong plasters, and the control group diclofenac diethylamine cream. The total clinical effective rate, scores of Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and Constant-Murley Score (CMS), and incidence of adverse reactions were selected as the evaluation indicators of clinical efficacy and safety. The SPSS22.0 software was used for statistical analysis. t-test or Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare the measurement data between the two groups. Wilcoxon rank sum test was used for grade data. χ² test was used to compared the enumeration data between the two groups. When P＜0.05, there is a statistical difference.

The total effective rate of the experimental group was 85.85% (97/113), which was better than that of the control group [65.18% (73/112)], with a statistical difference (χ²=13.002, P＜0.001). After the treatment, the VAS scores of the two groups were significantly lower than those before the treatment (both P＜0.05); and the score of VAS in the experimental group was significantly lower than that in the control group [(25.36±16.45) vs. (38.59±12.67)], with a statistical difference (t=6.754,P=0.006). After the treatment, the total score of CMS and the scores of each part of CMS of the two groups were significantly improved as compared with those before the treatment (all P＜0.05); the scores of pain, daily life activity, and range of motion in the experimental group were better than those in the control group [(7.45±2.23) vs. (6.08±3.12), (12.43±4.06) vs. (9.87±5.67), and (23.45±7.57) vs. (24.34±6.91); all P＜0.05]; there was no statistical difference in the muscle strength between the experimental group and the control group [(24.23±4.32) vs. (23.78±3.45); P＞0.05]. The total score of CMS in the experimental group was better than that in the control group, with a statistical difference (P＜0.05). During the period of treatment and observation, adverse reactions such as skin allergy occurred in both groups, and there was no statistical difference between the two groups (P＞0.05).

Qizheng Xiaotong plasters combined with massage for patients with scapulohumeral periarthritis can effectively alleviate their pain and joint dysfunction, and is safe and effective. However, the evidences still need to be verified by more high-quality, multicenter, randomized, double-blind clinical studies, strict safety evaluation, and long-term follow-up.

Scapulohumeral periarthritis; Qizheng Xiaotong plasters; Massage; Clinical curative effect