Augmented soft tissue mobilization vs natural history in the treatment of lateral epicondylitis: a pilot study
One page on PainSci cites Blanchette 2011: Tissue Provocation Therapies in Musculoskeletal Medicine
PainSci commentary on Blanchette 2011: ?This page is one of thousands in the PainScience.com bibliography. It is not a general article: it is focused on a single scientific paper, and it may provide only just enough context for the summary to make sense. Links to other papers and more general information are provided wherever possible.
A small clinical trial comparing treatment of tennis elbow with augmented soft tissue mobilization (tool massage) to “advice on the natural evolution of lateral epicondylitis, computer ergonomics, and stretching exercise.” Both helped a bit, and tools were no better.
original abstract †Abstracts here may not perfectly match originals, for a variety of technical and practical reasons. Some abstacts are truncated for my purposes here, if they are particularly long-winded and unhelpful. I occasionally add clarifying notes. And I make some minor corrections.
OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of augmented soft tissue mobilization (ASTM) on the treatment of lateral epicondylitis.
METHODS: This randomized clinical study assessed 27 subjects (12 men and 15 women) with lateral epicondylitis and were divided randomly into 2 groups. The experimental group (n = 15) received ASTM twice a week for 5 weeks. The subjects of the control group (n = 12) received advice on the natural evolution of lateral epicondylitis, computer ergonomics, and stretching exercises. Patient-rated outcome was assessed at baseline and after 6 weeks and 3 months using a visual analog scale and the Patient-Rated Tennis Elbow Evaluation. The function was assessed using the pain-free grip strength at baseline and after 6 weeks.
RESULTS: Both groups showed improvements in pain-free grip strength, visual analog scale, and Patient-Rated Tennis Elbow Evaluation. Sample size for larger future randomized clinical trial was 116 participants.
CONCLUSION: A larger study investigating the same hypothesis is warranted to detect difference in the effects of these treatments strategies. The study design is feasible, and minor improvements will help to minimize the potential bias.
This page is part of the PainScience BIBLIOGRAPHY, which contains plain language summaries of thousands of scientific papers & others sources. It’s like a highly specialized blog. A few highlights:
- Placebo analgesia in physical and psychological interventions: Systematic review and meta-analysis of three-armed trials. Hohenschurz-Schmidt 2024 Eur J Pain.
- Recovery trajectories in common musculoskeletal complaints by diagnosis contra prognostic phenotypes. Aasdahl 2021 BMC Musculoskelet Disord.
- Cannabidiol (CBD) products for pain: ineffective, expensive, and with potential harms. Moore 2023 J Pain.
- Moderators of the effect of therapeutic exercise for knee and hip osteoarthritis: a systematic review and individual participant data meta-analysis. Holden 2023 The Lancet Rheumatology.
- Inciting events associated with lumbar disc herniation. Suri 2010 Spine J.