Achilles tendinopathy Musculoskeletal Diseases Achilles tendinopathy
Conditions
Interventions
Participants will be randomised in a 1:1 ratio to receive 10% diclofenac treatment or an identical-appearing placebo gel. 1 g of the allocated gel will be massaged into a painful area of the tendon as
Sponsors
University of British Columbia
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Inclusion criteria
Inclusion criteria: 1. Aged 19 years and older 2. Fluent in English 3. Previously diagnosed with Achilles tendinopathy by a health care professional (imaging at the discretion of the treating physician) and demonstrating the following criteria: 3.1. Localized tendon pain and thickening, worsened with palpation and tendon loading activities 3.2. No clinical suspicion of other diagnoses 4. Symptoms for 3 months or more 5. Able to give informed consent 6. VISA-A score less than 80 7. Engaged in an active rehabilitation program prescribed by an exercise specialist
Exclusion criteria
Exclusion criteria: 1. BMI > 30.0. 2. Previous Achilles tendon rupture (complete or partial) 3. Diagnosed with chronic pain syndrome, diabetes, hyperprproteinemia, metabolic syndrome, or systemic inflammatory diseases 4. History of gastric ulcers, kidney disease or unstable hypertension 5. Symptomatic osteoarthritis of the spine or lower extremities 6. Received corticosteroid injections in the Achilles region 7. Regularly take non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medication 8. Prescribed anticoagulants or fluoroquinolones within the past 5 months 9. Allergies to diclofenac or the placebo cream 10. Unable to give informed consent
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| Severity of Achilles tendinopathy, assessed using the VISA-A score at the baseline and after 4 and 12 weeks | — |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| The following are assessed at the baseline and after 4 and 12 weeks: 1. Pain, assessed using Numeric Pain Rating Scale 1.1. Average pain during all tendon loading activities over last week 1.2. Average pain during rehabilitative exercise over last week 1.3. Average pain at rest during last week 1.4. Current resting pain 2. Patient-reported change in symptoms, assessed using a 7 point scale from substantially better to substantially worse 3. Pressure pain threshold (N), assessed using an algometer 4. transverse tendon stiffness (N/m) measured over the site of maximum tendon stiffness using the MyotonPro | — |
Countries
Canada
Contacts
Public ContactAlex Scott
Outcome results
None listed