To What Extent Do Musculoskeletal Ultrasound Biomarkers Relate to Pain, Flexibility, Strength, and Function in Individuals With Chronic Symptomatic Achilles Tendinopathy?
Mathieu Lalumiere, Sarah Perrino, Marie-Josée Nadeau and 4 others
PMID 36188777WHAT IT FOUND
Ultrasound markers showed only weak links to pain, flexibility, strength, or function, although they could distinguish a symptomatic Achilles tendon from the other side.
Key findings
01Symptomatic Achilles tendons showed greater thickness, lower echogenicity, and higher homogeneity than asymptomatic tendons.
02Ultrasound markers had negligible to low associations with most clinical and functional measures.
03Total VISA-A and LEFS scores did not show significant correlations with ultrasound markers.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The sample was modest, with 41 participants, and strength plus LEFS data were available only for 20. This limits confidence in the correlation findings. Participants had chronic midportion Achilles tendinopathy, and plantaris coexistence was not separately considered. Results may not apply to acute or insertional tendinopathy or other tendons. The comparison used the person's other side as the asymptomatic reference, which may also have tendon changes. Doppler and elastography measures were not included.
Declared interests
The authors declared no commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as conflicts. Funding came from a Clinical Research Partnership in Physiotherapy supported by the Ordre Professionnel de la Physiothérapie du Québec and the Quebec Rehabilitation Research Network, plus named scholarships, awards, and equipment grants.
The easy way to misread this
Do not use ultrasound thickness, brightness, or texture as a stand-alone measure of pain or function. In this study, these markers differed between sides but had only negligible to low associations with pain, flexibility, strength, and function.