RESEARCH
N-Z
O’Brien,
M. Functional anatomy and
physiology of tendons (1992) Clinical Sports
Medicine 11:505-20 Key Point:
The Achilles tendon is the thickest and strongest tendon in
the body.
Öhberg, L,
Lorentzon, R, and Alfredson, H. (2004) Eccentric training in patients with chronic
Achilles tendinosis: normalised tendon structure and decreased
thickness at follow up. British Journal of Sports
Medicine 38:8-11. Key point:
Ultrasound studies indicate that most of the 12 patients with
Achilles tendinosis who were treated with 12 weeks of
eccentric calf muscle training showed a localized decrease in
tendon thickness and a normalized tendon structure. The
remaining structural tendon abnormalities seemed to be
associated with residual pain in the
tendon.
Paavola, M., Kannus, P., Paakkala, T., Pasanen,
M., Järvinen, M. (2000). Long-term prognosis of patients with
Achilles tendinopathy. American Journal of Sports Medicine
28, 634–42. Key point: 8 years
after 83 patients suffered an Achilles tendon injury (and 30%
had surgery) 84% had fully recovered or only experienced mild
pain with strenuous exercise.
Ryan, A.J. (1978). Injections for tendon injuries: Cure or cause.
Physician and Sportsmedicine 6 (September),
39. Key point: Cortisone injections may make
a tendon more likely to rupture.
Schepsis, A.A., Jones, H., and Andrew L. Haas,
A.L. Achilles Tendon Disorders in
Athletes. American Journal of Sports
Medicine.2002; 30:
287-305.
Key points: a) Achilles tendon
injuries are among the more common injuries seen by sports
medicine physicians and b) although most cases of this
disorder are successfully treated without surgery, a small
subgroup of cases may benefit from
surgery.
Shrier,
I., Matheson, G.O.,
Kohl, H.W. (1996). Achilles
tendonitis: Are corticosteroid injections useful or harmful?
Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine 6, 245–50.
Key points: a) there is no evidence to
suggest that cortisone injections help with the treating the
Achilles tendon, and b) the hypothesis that cortisone
injections make a tendon more likely to rupture has not yet
been confirmed in a study on
humans.
Smart, G.W.,
Taunton, J.E., Clement,
D.B. (1980). Achilles tendon
disorders in runners: A review. Medicine and Science in Sports
and Exercise 12, 231–43. Key
points: a) The calf muscles’ rapid eccentric
shortening at heel strike followed by rapid contraction at
toe-off may cause degeneration of the Achilles tendon, b)
Achilles tendon injuries may be caused by sudden increases in
training distances, too many speed sessions, increased hill
running, heavy training after a layoff, and inflexibility of
the calf caused by too much training and not enough
stretching, and c) when performed by an experienced surgeon,
surgery for Achilles tendinosis (removal of the sheath and
then the scar tissue underneath) has a very high success
rate.
Stanish, W.D., Curwin, S., Rubinovich, M.
(1985). Tendinitis: The analysis and treatment for running.
Clinics in Sports Medicine 4, 593–609. and Stanish, W.D.,
Rubinovich, R.M., Curwin, S. (1986). Eccentric exercise in chronic
tendinitis. Clinical
Orthopedics
208, 65–68. Key point:
strengthening of the Achilles tendons with eccentric loading
should begin as soon after Achilles tendinosis is diagnosed as
possible.
Wong, W, Barrass, V, Maffulli, N (2002)
Quantitative Review of Operative
and Nonoperative Management of Achilles Tendon Ruptures
American Journal of Sports Medicine 30:565-575
(2002) Key point: analysis of 125 peer
reviewed articles reveals that open repair and early
mobilization give the best functional recovery and an
acceptable complication rate.
Woods, C, Hawkins, R, Hulse, M, and Hodson, A.
(2002) The Football Association
Medical Research Programme: an audit of injuries in
professional football—analysis of preseason injuries. British
Journal of Sports Medicine 36:436-441.
Key point: 91 professional football (soccer)
clubs were audited over a two year period, revealing that
Achilles tendonitis is more likely to occur in the pre-season
rather than the season. One third of its occurrences were in
the preseason.
Research A-J Research
K-M
