Objective: To investigate whether pathological changes in elbow epicondylopathy, as assessed by conventional ultrasonography and clinical outcomes, could be modified following tenotomy with platelet-rich plasma (PRP) versus tenotomy with lidocaine.
Methods: This prospective sub-study was part of a patient- and assessor-blinded, superiority-type, randomized, lidocaine-controlled trial that was performed in a tertiary hospital to assess the effectiveness of PRP versus lidocaine as tenotomy adjuvants in patients with epicondylopathy. Patients were followed after two sessions of tenotomy with either PRP or lidocaine adjuvants (4 ml) within a 2-week interval. Tendon thickness, echotexture, and neovascularization were assessed as secondary outcome measurements at baseline and at 3, 6, 12, and 20 months after treatment, and correlations with clinical outcomes were examined.
Results: Twenty months after treatment, tenotomy induced changes in tendon structure, thickness (± = 0.0006), vascularity (p < 0.0001), and echotexture (p < 0.0001). In Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH-E) and pain (VAS-P) scores, 80.85% and 90.91% of patients showed a meaningful clinical improvement, respectively, without differences between PRP and lidocaine. There were significant differences in between-group changes in vascularity over time, p = 0.037 and p = 0.049 in the unadjusted and adjusted models, respectively. There was no relationship between pain or function and sonographic entities at the various time points.
Conclusions: Two successive needle tenotomies induced structural changes in recalcitrant epicondylopathy, with PRP displaying more vascularization and increased thickness over time compared to lidocaine. PRP compared with lidocaine did not result in improved function or decreased pain over 20 months.
Keywords: Elbow; Needle tenotomy; PRP; RCT; Tendinopathy; Ultrasound; Vascularization.