Comparative Effectiveness of Traditional and Functional Exercise Programs Combined With Aerion Arthron Class Iv Laser Therapy in Patients With Grade I and Ii Supraspinatus Tears

Background: Partial supraspinatus tears commonly cause shoulder pain, weakness and difficulty witheveryday upper-limb activities. Conservative rehabilitation is often advised before surgery, but the typeof exercise used may influence the extent of recovery. Class IV laser therapy may support pain reliefand tissue healing, while functional exercise may improve the way the shoulder is used during real-lifetasks.Aim: To compare traditional exercises and functional exercises when both are combined with AerionArthron Class IV laser therapy in patients with Grade I and II supraspinatus tears.Methodology: Sixty participants aged 20–60 years with conservatively managed supraspinatus tearswere divided into two equal groups. Group A received traditional shoulder exercises with Class IVlaser therapy, whereas Group B received functional exercises with the same laser intervention. Painand upper-limb disability were assessed using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and QuickDASHbefore and after treatment. Paired t-tests were used for within-group analysis, and independent t-testswere used to compare change scores between groups.Results: Both groups improved significantly. In Group A, VAS decreased from 7.020 ± 0.511 to 4.763± 0.766, while QuickDASH decreased from 65.741 ± 6.226 to 43.804 ± 6.911. In Group B, VASdecreased from 7.222 ± 0.585 to 2.812 ± 0.651, and QuickDASH decreased from 69.267 ± 6.536 to27.829 ± 7.788. Between-group analysis favoured Group B for VAS improvement (mean difference2.154, p < 0.001) and QuickDASH improvement (mean difference 19.501, p < 0.001).Conclusion: Traditional and functional exercise programmes were both beneficial when combinedwith Class IV laser therapy. However, functional exercises produced greater pain relief and functionalrecovery, suggesting that task-oriented and kinetic-chain-based training may offer additional clinicalvalue in conservative rehabilitation of Grade I and II supraspinatus tears.