Article

Recent research indicates that physiotherapy interventions, such as
exercise and manual therapy, may be effective in decreasing the frequency of side
effects linked with breast cancer treatment, including fatigue, pain, nausea, and
decreased quality of life.
This systematic review aims to determine the efficacy
of exercise therapy in reducing shoulder pain related to breast cancer treatment
and to identify outcome measures that can be used to assess shoulder pain in this
population. Methods: A systematic review of the current literature was conducted
using portals such as the Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro), the Cumulative
Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE
(1996 to April 2011), and Allied and Complementary Medicine (AMED) (1985 to April
2011). Databases were searched for relevant studies published up to April 2011.
Participants in relevant studies were adults (>/=18 years of age) with a primary
diagnosis of breast cancer at any point during the treatment of their disease.
Results: Six articles were independently appraised by two blinded reviewers. Six
studies met the inclusion criteria, each analyzing different types of
exercise-shoulder/arm/scapular strengthening/stabilization, postural exercises,
general exercises and conditioning, shoulder range-of-motion exercises, and
lymphedema exercises-with respect to their efficacy in reducing shoulder pain
related to breast cancer treatment. Conclusions: Results suggest that exercise
targeting shoulder pain related to breast cancer treatment may be effective.
However, definitive conclusions cannot be drawn due to the lack of methodological
quality and homogeneity of the studies included. Clinicians should use valid
outcome measures, such as the visual analogue scale and brief pain inventory, to
evaluate the effectiveness of this treatment.

Langue : ANGLAIS