TREATMENT OF CHRONIC ELBOW TENDINOSIS WITH BUFFERED PLATELET-RICH PLASMA

Mishra A, Pavelko T. Am J Sports Med 2006;34:1774–8

Background:

A small percentage of patients with chronic epicondylar tendinosis of the elbow do not respond to non-operative treatment; however, many are still considering non-operative treatment options.

Research question/s:

Does local infiltration with buffered platelet-rich plasma reduce pain and increase function in patients suffering from chronic severe elbow tendinosis who are considering surgery?

Methodology:

Subjects:

20 of 140 patients presenting with chronic elbow epicondylar pain that has not responded to non-operative treatment following a standardised physical therapy protocol and other non-operative treatments.

Experimental procedure:

20 patients with significant persistent (mean 15 months) pain (mean of 82; 60–100 pain on VAS 0–100 scale) and who were considering surgery were allocated in a non-randomised fashion to either a single percutaneous injection of platelet-rich plasma (PRP = 15) or bupivacaine (LA group = 5). Subjects were assessed before and after 1, 2 and 6 months after intervention.

Measures of outcome:

Pain (VAS 0–100), elbow function (Mayo elbow score, best = 100).

Conclusion/s:

In a non-randomised pilot study, treatment …