There are 66 million musculoskeletal injuries each year in the US. This leads to $144 billion dollars being spent on cures and treatments. 45% of those are tendon injuries which result from repetitive strain and improper healing.
While surgeries attempt to fix the problem, they often cause joint issues, decrease stability, and increase the risk of infections. For this reason, public awareness of non-invasive treatment methods is critical to improving quality of life.
Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy (ESWT) is the most effective of the three treatments we will discuss today. ESWT has become popular for treating common overuse conditions associated with elbow, heel, shoulder, hip, ankle, and knee pain (epicondylopathy, plantar fasciopathy, rotator cuff tendinopathy, trochanteropathy, Achilles tendinopathy, and patellar tendinopathy)
A study by “Gerdesmeyer et al. showed in a double-blind random chronic calcific shoulder tendinopathy clinical trial that both high and low frequencies resulted in reduced pain.” However, some studies show mixed results when ESWT is compared to other treatments or placebos.
Overall ESWT has shown beneficial maintenance of long-term pain relief.
Radial Wave Therapy is different from Shockwaves in that it uses compressed air to penetrate the skin. While this treatment is less effective than ESWT, it does not cause pain for the patient.
Studies have shown a decrease in pain when compared to placebos and other treatments over 6-month and 12-month periods.
Therapeutic Ultrasound (LITUS) has been used to treat tendon injuries for decades. Some animal studies show characteristics of accelerated healing, however, clinical success is mixed, perhaps due to inconsistencies in dosages and reporting.
Conclusion: All 3 treatments have shown effectiveness in reducing pain, without the negative side effects of surgeries.
Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9304757/#R2
