Luca Maria Sconfienza MD, Presenter: Nothing to Disclose

Francesca Lacelli MD, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Nadia Perrone MD, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Enzo Silvestri MD, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Edoardo Savarino MD, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Giovanni Serafini MD, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Calcifying tendinitis of the rotator cuff occurs in up to 20% of the population. No standard of care has been established. Our work compares the outcome of a US-guided percutaneous treatment of patients affected with calcifying tendinitis of the rotator cuff with the outcome of patients affected with the same disease treated with a simple steroid injection.

Among patients referred for US-guided treatment of calcifying tendinitis, we randomly treated 87 (39 males; age range 35-64, mean 46.1 ± 8.6) with an US-guided percutaneous treatment while 49 with a simple steroid injection (21 males; age range 30.69, mean 44.2 ± 9.6). Clinical conditions of patients and controls were assessed using Constant’s score (CS) and visual analogue score (VAS). Patients were clinically followed up to 5 years.

At baseline, patients and controls were homogeneous for age (P = 0.74) and sex (P = 0.45) distribution, CS (P = 0.39) and VAS (P = 0.67). CS and VAS of treated patients resulted in significant improvement than that of injected patient at 1 month, 3 months and 1 year (P < 0.001), but were not significantly different at 5 years (P = 0.654 and P = 0.486, respectively).

The treated patients had a better outcome compared to the injected group in the long-term analysis. Thus, the US-guided treatment is highly effective in giving a prompt functional recovery and relief from pain. On the long term, a spontaneous healing occurs also in injected patients, but only after 5 years.

Ultrasound-guided percutaneous treatment  seems to be the standard of treatment for calcific tendinitis of rotator cuff.

Sconfienza, L, Lacelli, F, Perrone, N, Silvestri, E, Savarino, E, Serafini, G, Calcifying Tendinitis of the Rotator Cuff: Is a Percutaneous US-guided Treatment More Effective than Simple Steroid Injection?.  Radiological Society of North America 2009 Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting, November 29 - December 4, 2009 ,Chicago IL. http://archive.rsna.org/2009/8017007.html