The Short Term Effects of Shock-Wave Therapy for Tennis Elbow: a Clinical Trial Study

Tennis elbow is one of the most often diagnosed pathology of the upper extremity and different treatments have been suggested for this disease, so this study was to investigate the effects of extracorporeal shock wave therapy in Tennis elbow treatment.

We design a before and after clinical trial study (registry number: IRCT2012072610405N1) and investigated 40 patients with tennis elbow disease. All patients received 2000 pulses extracorporeal shock wave by piezoelectric device (WOLF Company) daily for one-week. The severity of pain was the primary outcome and measured with visual analogue scale (VAS). Secondary outcome was the ability to perform daily activities using questionnaire's quick DASH (Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand). Primary and secondary outcomes at baseline, 30 and 60 days after intervention were measured.

The mean age of patients was 43.80±8.97 years and 28 patients (70%) were female. The mean duration of disease was 6.5 ± 7.9 month. The mean score of VAS pain score reduced from 7.25±1.54cm (median=7cm) before treatment to 2.76±2.08cm (median=2cm) at 60 days after the end of treatment (P<0.001). The Quick Dash score reduced significantly from 25.20±5.31 (median=25) before treatment to 8.69±8.32 (median=6) at 60 days after the treatment (P<0.001).

For newly diagnosed patients with tennis elbow, extracorporeal shock wave therapy can reduce the severity of pain and improve daily activity.