Early application of extracorporeal shock wave therapy improves pain control and functional scores in patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty: a randomized controlled trial.

PURPOSE: The use of biophysical stimuli produced by extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT) can improve the rehabilitation treatment of patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty (TKA). The aim of our study is to evaluate the short-term efficacy of early postoperative ESWT in combination with physiotherapy in terms of pain reduction and motor function recovery of patients undergoing TKA and compare it with conventional physiotherapy treatment. METHODS: Fifty-six patients undergoing TKA were enrolled in the study from January 2019 to February 2020. Patients received two sessions of physiotherapy daily, with (experimental group) or without (control group) four sessions of ESWT within seven days after surgery. Patients were prospectively evaluated at baseline and at post-operative day two and seven. Assessment included active knee range of motion (aROM), timed up and go (TUG) test, visual analogue scale (VAS) for pain, and Borg scale. RESULTS: Fifty patients completed the study. Both treatments proved to be effective in reducing pain and improving the knee range of motion and functional scores at seven days after surgery: the aROM in the ESWT group was 36.8 ± 11.0 grades (p < 0.001), while in control group was 19.8 ± 7.8 grades (p < 0.001). TUG, VAS, and BORG scores showed a similar trend. Comparative analysis revealed superior clinical results for the experimental group in all the outcomes, in particular aROM (96.0 ± 5.40 vs. 81.20 ± 11.01, p < 0.001) and TUG test (17.4 ± 5.61 vs. 21.24 ± 5.88, p < 0.001), at day seven after surgery. CONCLUSION: Early application of ESWT in addition to physiotherapy can positively influence the rehabilitation process after TKA. The treatment proved to be well tolerated and safe. Preliminary results demonstrated better pain control and functional scores compared to physiotherapy alone.

Multimodal conservative treatment of migrating bone marrow edema associated with early osteonecrosis of the hip.

Bone marrow edema syndrome is a severely disabling painful condition without a defined treatment and related to pathogenetic mechanisms not yet clearly recognized. We report the case of a 59-year-old post-menopausal woman, affected by bone marrow edema associated with early osteonecrosis of the femoral head with secondary appearance of a rare migrant bone edema of the hip acetabulum. Clinical evaluation and magnetic resonance imaging were used to monitor the outcome of the patient. Pre-treatment clinical evaluation revealed pain upon stepping with the left limb, reduced range of motion of spine and hip, and hip pain during passive rotation. Magnetic resonance imaging showed diffuse signal alteration of the head and neck of the left femur in relation to bone edema, associated with an unclear small cephalic area of the femoral head suggestive of initial osteonecrosis. A further computed tomography scan was performed that did not reveal any alterations in bone profile, interruption of the cortex, or trabecular bone collapse. We immediately started a multimodal conservative treatment administering neridronate (100 mg, intravenously) combined with calcium and vitamin D supplementation and biophysical therapies (magnetotherapy and extracorporeal shockwave therapy). We also instructed the patient not to bear the load on the affected lower limb during standing and walking, using crutches. After 2 months, a notable regression of pain with improvement in mobility was observed. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed complete regression of edema at the head and neck of the femur; however, the new appearance of acetabular bone edema of the ipsilateral acetabular roof was detected. After 4 months, a third magnetic resonance imaging showed the disappearance of the femoral head and acetabular roof defects as well as the complete clinical recovery of the patient. An early diagnosis and intervention are essential to conservatively treat cases of bone marrow edema syndrome.

Mesenchymal stem cells as therapeutic target of biophysical stimulation for the treatment of musculoskeletal disorders.

BACKGROUND: Musculoskeletal disorders are regarded as a major cause of worldwide morbidity and disability, and they result in huge costs for national health care systems. Traditional therapies frequently turned out to be poorly effective in treating bone, cartilage, and tendon disorders or joint degeneration. As a consequence, the development of novel biological therapies that can treat more effectively these conditions should be the highest priority in regenerative medicine. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) represent one of the most promising tools in musculoskeletal tissue regenerative medicine, thanks to their proliferation and differentiation potential and their immunomodulatory and trophic ability. Indeed, MSC-based approaches have been proposed for the treatment of almost all orthopedic conditions, starting from different cell sources, alone or in combination with scaffolds and growth factors, and in one-step or two-step procedures. While all these approaches would require cell harvesting and transplantation, the possibility to stimulate the endogenous MSCs to enhance their tissue homeostasis activity represents a less-invasive and cost-effective therapeutic strategy. Nowadays, the role of tissue-specific resident stem cells as possible therapeutic target in degenerative pathologies is underinvestigated. Biophysical stimulations, and in particular extracorporeal shock waves treatment and pulsed electromagnetic fields, are able to induce proliferation and support differentiation of MSCs from different origins and affect their paracrine production of growth factors and cytokines. SHORT CONCLUSIONS: The present review reports the attempts to exploit the resident stem cell potential in musculoskeletal pathologies, highlighting the role of MSCs as therapeutic target of currently applied biophysical treatments.

New insights in extracellular matrix remodeling and collagen turnover related pathways in cultured human tenocytes after ciprofloxacin administration.

We characterized the effect of ciprofloxacin (CPX) in cultured human tenocytes by morphological and molecular methods. Collagen type I and III mRNA and protein levels were unaffected, but lysyl hydroxylase 2b mRNA levels progressively decreased after CPX administration. MMP-1 protein levels significantly increased after 20 µg/ml CPX administration but remained unmodified at the higher dose, whilst MMP-2 activity was unchanged. Tissue inhibitor of MMP (TIMP-1) gene expression decreased after CPX treatment, whilst TIMP-2 and transforming growth factor-ß1 gene expression, the cytoskeleton arrangement, and cytochrome c expression remained unmodified. Secreted Protein Acidic and Rich in Cysteine mRNA and protein levels remained almost unchanged, whilst N-cadherin mRNA levels resulted significantly down-regulated and connexin 43 gene expression tended to decrease after CPX administration. The CPX-induced decreased ability to cross-link collagen and decreased TIMP-1 levels, possibly leading to higher activity of MMPs in ECM degradation, together with the down-regulation of N-cadherin and connexin 43 are consistent with a reduced ability to maintain tissue homeostasis, possibly making the tendon more susceptible to rupture.