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Transcutaneous Pulsed Radiofrequency and Corticosteroids Injections in Management of Pain in Lateral Epicondylitis

A Comparative Study Between Transcutaneous Pulsed Radiofrequency and Corticosteroids Injections in Management of Pain in Lateral Epicondylitis

Status
Completed
Phases
NA
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT06710704
Enrollment
70
Registered
2024-11-29
Start date
2024-04-01
Completion date
2024-10-24
Last updated
2024-11-29

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Corticosteroids Injections, Lateral Epicondylitis, Pain, Pulsed Radiofrequency, Transcutaneous

Brief summary

The aim of the study is to compare between transcutaneous pulsed radiofrequency and corticosteroids injections in management of pain severity, forearm pain, functional disability and patient capability to operate daily activities in patients with lateral epicondylitis

Detailed description

Lateral epicondylitis (LE), or tennis elbow, is the most common elbow pain condition. Pain in the lateral aspect of the elbow, especially the extensor tendon origin (extensor carpi radialis brevis \[ECRB\] and extensor digitorum communis \[EDC\]), is the most consistent symptom. It affects up to 3 % of the population and is usually an overload injury that often follows minor and often unrecognized trauma to the extensor forearm muscles of the forearm. Transcutaneous pulsed radiofrequency treatment is a noninvasive, needleless, painless, office/outpatient treatment that requires no recovery, sedation, or anesthesia. We were encouraged to research transcutaneous pulsed radiofrequency as a treatment option because of favorable outcomes in previous trials. Therefore, transcutaneous pulsed radiofrequency treatment used successfully in a type of orthopedic surgeries, we designed this trial to examine it in the management of pain in lateral epicondylitis.

Interventions

Patients underwent transcutaneous PRF at the affected elbow.

DRUGMethylprednisolone and mepacaine

Patients received intraarticular injections of methylprednisolone (40 mg/ml) with 1 ml mepacaine at the point with utmost tenderness in the lateral epicondyle area under aseptic conditions.

Sponsors

Tanta University
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 65 Years
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* Age from 18-65 years. * Both sexes. * Symptomatic lateral epicondylitis for more than 6 months. Lateral epicondylitis was diagnosed when pain is elicited by two or more of these diagnostic exams: 1. Palpation of the lateral epicondyle. 2. Resisted wrist extension (Thompson test). 3. Chair test. With the shoulder flexed to 60° and the elbow extended, the patient attempts to lift a chair weighing 3.5 kg.

Exclusion criteria

* Severe systemic diseases (diabetes or rheumatoid arthritis). * Cervical radiculopathy. * Major trauma or prior surgery in the tendon of the elbow. * Morbid obese patients (body mass index (BMI) of \>35 kg/m2). * Infection at site of injection. * Bleeding diathesis and coagulopathy. * Patients who didn't consent to completing visual analog scale , rated tennis elbow evaluation (PRTEE), disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand (Quick DASH) questionnaire. and refuse to participate in the study.

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Degree of pain.12 weeks after treatmentAssessment of pain severity by visual analog scale (VAS) before treatment and at 2, 4, 8, and 12 weeks after treatment. The visual analog scale (VAS) score it has 10-cm scale that represents a continuum between 0 = no pain and 10 = worst pain.

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Forearm pain12 weeks after treatmentForearm pain wasassessed by patient-rated tennis elbow evaluation (PRTEE). The Rated Tennis Elbow Evaluation (PRTEE) was also used to rate the levels of tennis elbow pain and disability from 0 to 10, and consists of 2 subscales: Pain subscale - 5 items (0 = no pain, 10 = worst imaginable). Function subscale (0 = no difficulty, 10 = unable to do) Specific activities - 6 items.
Functional disability12 weeks after treatmentFunctional disability was assessed by patient-rated tennis elbow evaluation (PRTEE) before treatment and at 2, 4, 8, and 12 weeks after treatment.. The Rated Tennis Elbow Evaluation (PRTEE) was also used to rate the levels of tennis elbow pain and disability from 0 to 10, and consists of 2 subscales: Pain subscale - 5 items (0 = no pain, 10 = worst imaginable). Function subscale (0 = no difficulty, 10 = unable to do) Specific activities - 6 items.
Patient capability12 weeks after treatmentPatient capability to operate daily activities was evaluated using Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand (Quick DASH) questionnaire before treatment and at 2, 4, 8, and 12 weeks after treatment. The Quick DASH is a shortened edition of the original DASH result amount. Quick DASH was used to measure of self-rated upper-extremity disability and symptoms before. It is a 11-item and self-report questionnaire that looks at the ability of a patient to perform certain upper extremity activities, patients can rate difficulty and interference with daily life on a 5-point Likert scale (1 being no difficulty, 5 being unable).

Countries

Egypt

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026