Blood Flow Restriction Exercise-induced Hypoalgesia

The goal of this crossover randomized clinical trial is to compare the acute effect on exercise-induced hypoalgesia (EIH) between isometric exercise with blood flow restriction (BFR) and isometric exercise alone in adults undergoing arthroscopic rotator cuff repair. It is presumed that the addition of BFR to isometric exercises induces a greater effect in EIH.

Patients who agree to participate in this research will be randomly assigned to two intervention sequences (AB or BA), where intervention A (experimental) corresponds to isometric exercises with BFR, and intervention B (control) corresponds to isometric exercises alone. For one week, each participant attended two sessions, separated by a 72-hours wash-out period. The primary variables will be the pressure pain threshold (PPT) and conditioned pain modulation (CPM). Secondary variables will be the pain intensity and distribution, kinesiophobia, upper extremity disability, and quality of life. Results will be measured before intervention (T1, pre-intervention), immediate after intervention (T2, post-intervention 1) and 10 minutes after intervention (T3, post-intervention 2).