Effect of the scapula-setting exercise on acromio-humeral distance and scapula muscle activity in patients with subacromial impingement syndrome

The aim of present study was to investigate the effect of the scapula setting exercise on acromio-humeral distance (AHD) and the activity of scapula muscles in patients with subacromial impingement syndrome (SIS). Cross sectional study. Pusan National University Yangsan Hospital in South Korea. Twenty-eight patients with SIS. We measured AHD by ultrasound and muscle activation of the serratus anterior (SA), upper trapezius (UT), middle trapezius (MT), and lower trapezius (LT) by surface electromyography and compared outcome measures between patients with and without the SSE. The SSE involved maintaining the scapula in upward rotation with posterior tilting in the resting position, and passive shoulder elevation at 60° in the scapula plane. The AHD (rest and 60°: P