Faster and Superior Functional Recovery and Sleep Quality with Steroid Injection Versus Physical Therapy for...

Area of Science:

• Orthopedics
• Sports Medicine
• Physical Therapy

Background:

• Partial thickness supraspinatus tendon rupture (PTSR) can impact shoulder function and sleep quality.
• Evaluating non-surgical treatment options is crucial for managing PTSR.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the efficacy of steroid injection (SI) versus physical therapy and rehabilitation (PTR) for PTSR.
• To assess the impact of SI and PTR on functional outcomes and sleep quality.

Main Methods:

• A comparative study involving patients diagnosed with PTSR.
• Two groups: SI (betamethasone + prilocaine) and PTR (deltoid muscle exercise).
• Functional status (QuickDASH) and sleep quality (PSQI) were assessed at baseline, 1 month, and 3 months post-treatment.

Main Results:

• Both SI and PTR groups showed significant improvements in QuickDASH and PSQI scores from baseline to 1 and 3 months.
• No statistically significant difference in QuickDASH scores between the SI and PTR groups at any time point.
• The SI group exhibited significantly lower PSQI scores (indicating better sleep quality) at 1 and 3 months compared to the PTR group.

Conclusions:

• Both steroid injection and physical therapy/rehabilitation are effective in improving functional outcomes and sleep quality in patients with PTSR.
• Steroid injection provides a more rapid improvement in sleep quality compared to physical therapy and rehabilitation.
• Functional recovery was similar between the two treatment modalities.