TY - JOUR T1 - Full symptomatic recovery does not ensure full recovery of muscle-tendon function in patients with Achilles tendinopathy JF - British Journal of Sports Medicine JO - Br J Sports Med SP - 276 LP - 280 DO - 10.1136/bjsm.2006.033464 VL - 41 IS - 4 AU - Karin Grävare Silbernagel AU - Roland Thomeé AU - Bengt I Eriksson AU - Jon Karlsson Y1 - 2007/04/01 UR - http://bjsm.bmj.com/content/41/4/276.abstract N2 - Objective: To assess the relationship between muscle-tendon function and symptoms in patients with Achilles tendinopathy using a validated test battery. Design: A prospective non-randomised trial. Setting: Orthopaedic Department, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Sweden. Patients: 37 patients with a clinical diagnosis of Achilles tendinopathy in the midportion of the tendon, with symptoms for >2 months, were evaluated at the initiation of the study and after 1 year. Intervention: The patients were treated using a rehabilitation programme, under the supervision of a physical therapist, for 6 months. Main outcome measurements: The patients were evaluated using the Swedish version of the Victorian Institute of Sports Assessment—Achilles questionnaire (VISA-A-S) for symptoms, and a test battery for evaluation of the lower leg muscle-tendon function. Results: There were significant improvements in the VISA-A-S score (p<0.00, n = 37) and the test battery (p<0.02, n = 19) at the 1-year follow-up. The VISA-A-S questionnaire had an effect size of 2.1 and the test battery had an effect size of 0.73. A low correlation (r = 0.178, p>0.05) was found between the VISA-A-S score and the test battery. A high correlation (r = 0.611, p<0.05) was found between the drop counter movement jump and the VISA-A-S score. All other tests in the test battery had low correlations (r = −0.305 to 0.155, p>0.05) with the VISA-A-S score. Only 25% (4/16) of the patients who had full symptomatic recovery had achieved full recovery of muscle–tendon function as measured by the test battery. Conclusion: Full symptomatic recovery in patients with Achilles tendinopathy does not ensure full recovery of muscle–tendon function. The VISA-A-S questionnaire and the test battery are sensitive to clinically relevant changes with treatment and can be recommended for use in both the clinic and research. ER -