• Clinics in Shoulder and Elbow
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.133-137
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• 2017

Background: To determine the natural progression of conservatively treated rotator cuff tears, we evaluated changes in radiologic and clinical parameters in patients whose recalcitrant tears were neglected after conservative treatment. Methods: A total of 73 patients with recalcitrant rotator cuff tears in spite of conservative treatment were included in this study. We measured changes in tear size and in the extent of fatty infiltration of the rotator cuff by comparing the initial and final follow-up magnetic resonance imagings (MRIs). To determine factors influencing the change in tear size, we collected the medical history of patients taken at the time of initial admission. Results: The average follow-up period was 20.1 months, and the average increase in tear size across this period was 6.2 mm. In terms of steroid injection, we found that the increases in tear size of the steroid injection group (p=0.049) and of the sub-group that had received more than three steroid injections (p=0.010) were significantly greater than that of the non-steroid injection group. Conclusions: We found that the increase in cuff tear size was on average 6.2 mm across the follow-up period, indicating that neglecting cuff tears may cause them to progress into more severe tears. We also observed that a history of steroid injection might be a possible risk factor for a worse prognosis of cuff tears. Therefore, we suggest that patients with rotator cuff tears and a history of steroid injection are recommended aggressive modes of treatment such as surgery.

• Journal of the Korean Orthopaedic Association
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• v.55 no.5
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• pp.418-425
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• 2020

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to introduce the ultrasound-guided transmeniscal injection in medial compartment knee osteoarthritis and analyze the clinical outcomes. Materials and Methods: The electronic medical records of 36 patients with medial compartment knee osteoarthritis who were treated with an ultrasound-guided transmeniscal injection from March 2019 to July 2019 were accessed for this retrospective review. Using an ultrasound guided spinal needle, the patients received an intra-articular steroid injection at the medial compartment of the knee. A physical examination was conducted at the initial visit (pre-injection), and at one week, four weeks, and eight weeks after the injection. The numeric pain rating scale (NRS), Lequesne index, and Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis (WOMAC) score were measured at each visit and analyzed over time. The percentage change of the patients who revealed substantial improvement was analyzed. The NRS, Lequesne index, and percentage of patients, who revealed substantial improvement over time classified by osteoarthritis grade, were analyzed. Results: The NRS and Lequesne index decreased at one week, four weeks, and eight weeks after the injection compared to the initial baseline, and the pain-relief effect continued without change until eight weeks. The percentage of patients who showed substantial improvement at one, four, and eight weeks was 50.0%, 47.2%, and 52.8%, respectively. The WOMAC scores decreased at one, four, and eight weeks compared to the initial baseline, and the decrease was continued without any difference until eight weeks. The percentage of patients with osteoarthritis stage 1 or 2 who revealed more than substantial improvement was significantly higher at one, four, and eight weeks than those with osteoarthritis stages 3 or 4 (p<0.05). Conclusion: In patients with medial compartment knee osteoarthritis, the pain reduction and functional improvement persisted for at least eight weeks after the ultrasound-guided transmeniscal injection at the medial compartment. In particular, patients with medial compartment osteoarthritis stage 1 or 2 showed more effective pain reduction.