New IR treatment for tennis elbow reduces pain and inflammation without surgery

The tennis elbow, a chronic painful condition that affects up to 3% of the American adult population, can be effectively treated with transcatheter arterial embolization (TAE), an image guided nonsurgical treatment that reduces blood flow abnormal in the injured area. reduce inflammation and pain, according to research presented today at the 2019 Annual Scientific Meeting of the Society of Interventional Radiology. This condition, also known as lateral epicondylitis, stems from repetitive stress-related trauma that occurs during activities such as sports, typing, and knitting. Injuries are common among carpenters, cooks and assembly line workers who affect critical tasks that affect their performance and quality of life. .

"Tennis elbow can be difficult to treat, leaving many patients unable to perform the simplest tasks, such as picking up their children, preparing dinner or even working on a computer. With this frustration, many patients are turning to invasive major surgery after years of work. failure of physical therapy and drug use, "said Yuji Okuno, MD, Ph.D., founder of the Okuno Clinic in Japan and lead author of the study." We wanted to know if this technique, already used in other parts of the body, would be effective against this debilitating and common disease and help people to regain immediately an amplitude of movement that many of us take for granted in our daily tasks. "

Dr. Okuno's team conducted a prospective study of 52 tennis elbow patients who had not been relieved by other forms of treatment. Patients received TAE between March 2013 and October 2017 and were followed up until four years after treatment. The researchers reported finding statistically significant reductions in pain assessment scores, using methods such as rapid disability scores of the arm, shoulder and hands; pain rating scores on the visual analogue scale; Tennis elbow evaluation scores assessed by the patient; and painless grasping force. In addition, images taken in 32 patients two years after EAT showed improved tendinosis and tear scores.

The treatment can be completed in about an hour and requires only a needle hole to access the radial artery of the wrist under local anesthesia. A catheter is moved from the wrist to the elbow where the inflamed blood vessels are embolized, thus preventing excessive blood flow to the affected part of the elbow. The treatment is safe and effective and does not require physical therapy, researchers said. No adverse events were observed and no patient had adverse effects on bones, cartilage or surrounding muscles.

The tennis elbow is caused by the overuse and repetitive stress of the tendons and muscles around the elbow. It generally affects athletes practicing repetitive movements such as tennis or golf, but can also affect the performance of carpenters, cooks, assemblers and others. Although pain is a characteristic symptom, tennis's chronic elbow can result in loss of grip and arm strength, limited arm use, and burning sensations in the outer arm.

More information:
Summary 25: Mid-term clinical results after transcatheter arterial embolization for resistance to lateral epicondylitis at conservative treatment. Y. Okuno; Mr. Shibuya. Okuno Clinic, Tokyo, Japan. Annual Scientific Meeting of the SIR, March 23-28, 2019. This summary can be found at sirmeeting.org.

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Interventional Radiology Society