Effects of ultrasound-guided nerve hydro-dissection on severe post stroke shoulder pain: a pilot study

Background Shoulder pain is a major complication following stroke that substantially compromises patients' quality of life, despite the availability of various therapeutic options. Objective This pilot study investigates the efficacy of ultrasound-guided nerve hydrodissection in treating severe post-stroke shoulder pain. Methods Twelve eligible subjects were randomly assigned to the nerve hydro-dissection group ( n = 6) and the control group ( n = 6). All participants were given standardized shoulder rehabilitation, and the intervention group underwent additional ultrasound-guided brachial plexus hydrodissection. Visual analog scale (VAS), Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA) motor subscores of upper extremity and Shoulder Constant-Murley score were assessed at the baseline, and day1, week1, week2, week4 after the treatment. Results The VAS scores in both groups had shown a decreasing trend at the four time points and there was a significant difference between the groups ( p = 0.015, 0.015, 0.004 at the later three time points). The changes in Constant-Murley scores of both groups had shown an increasing trend and there was a significant difference between the groups ( p = 0.026, 0.002, 0.041 at the later three time points). Conclusions Ultrasound-guided nerve hydrodissection shows promising preliminary efficacy for post-stroke shoulder pain in this pilot study, warranting further investigation in larger, sham-controlled trials with longer follow-up.