Background Ankylosing spondylitis (AS)is a chronic inflammatory disease of the axial skeleton manifested by back pain and progressive stiffness of the spine. Objectives The purpose of this clinical trial was to evalute the effects of physical modality as microwave therapy and global postural reeducation program (1) in patients with anklyosing spondylitis (AS) on pain, functional and mobility outcomes. Methods Seventy-seven patients diagnosed with AS according to the modified criteria of New york and/or ASAS were allocated to three groups using a random numbers table. All patients received medical therapy which was not changed during the study.The first group was treated with global postural reeducation (GPR) method in which the shortened muscle chains are strecthed and strenghtened. The second group was treated with microwave therapy to heat lumbar paraspinal muscles in additon to GPR. The third group is control group which received only medical therapy The study lasted 3 months.During this period,patients received group sessions for three weeks. Each session was managed by an experienced physiotherapist and lasted for an hour.All patients were evaluted at the entry to the study,on the third week and third month visits by an assessor blinded to the intervention.The assesment parameters were: BASMI, BASDAI, BASFI, SF-36,VAS (for pain intensity) and beck depression questionaire. Results Between the groups there was no difference in demographic data. In the intragroup comparison (pre-post scores),the improvement in all outcome measures was statistically significant in GPR group (p<0.05) (except emotional role subscala of SF-36). In GPR plus microwave group showed stastitical improvement in all outcome measures at the third week (except VAS and emotional role subgroup of SF-36). Development in this group carried on to third month (except VAS). Intergroup comparison between the first and second groups which were based on GPR showed a greater improvement than the control group in BASMI, BASFI, BASDAI as well as beck depression and SF-36 scores. Intermalleolar distance and phsycial function subgroup of SF-36 showed a greater improvement in GPR group compared to GPR plus microwave group on third month visit (p<0.05). In the control group, the improvement in BASDAI, beck depression score, modified schober test and intermalleolar distance was stastistically significant at the third month follow-up (p<0.05).Although this outcomes also reached a significant level in control group,they did not show clinical improvement. Conclusions Our study shows that GPR method has a beneficial effect on spinal mobility, disease activity, quality of life and depression in patients with AS. It seems that using pysical modality such as microwave before exercise may not have additional benefit however this notion requires further research. References Fernández-de-Las-Peñas C, Alonso-Blanco C, Morales-Cabezas M, Miangolarra-Page JC. Two exercise interventions for the management of patients with ankylosing spondylitis: a randomized ...

Background/Aim: Lateral epicondylitis (LE), commonly known as “tennis elbow”, is a painful inflammatory condition affecting wrist extensor tendons. Various treatments, such as extracorporeal shockwave therapy (ESWT) and neural therapy injections, have been used to alleviate symptoms of LE. However, there is a limited number of comparative studies available. This study aims to compare the effectiveness of sequential neural therapy injections and ESWT in reducing pain and improving functionality in patients with LE. Methods: A retrospective cohort study analyzed data from 128 LE patients. Among them, 30 patients underwent neural therapy, while 30 underwent ESWT, following the exclusion criteria. Pain levels were measured using the visual analog scale (VAS), and functionality was assessed using the Duruöz hand index (DHI) before and after treatment. Results: Both neural therapy injections and ESWT led to substantial reductions in pain and improvements in functionality, with no notable differences observed between the two treatment methods. Additionally, no significant variations were found based on age, body mass index, gender, or the side of the elbow treated. Conclusion: The findings suggest that both neural therapy injections and ESWT are equally effective in managing symptoms of LE. Treatment choice may depend on patient preference, cost, availability, or other factors. Further research is necessary to examine long-term outcomes, potential side effects, and factors predicting a better response to one treatment.

Aim:The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of microwave therapy and global postural reeducation (GPR) exercises on disease activity, pain, quality of life and functional status in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS). Materials and Methods: 77 patients diagnosed with AS were included in the study. First group (n: 25) was treated with global postural reeducation exercises 5 days a week, for 3 weeks. Patients in the second group (n: 26), in addition to GPR, were treated with microwave therapy before each exercise session to warm lumbar paraspinal muscles. Third group (n: 26) consisted of controls. Subjects were evaluated at baseline, on the third week, third and six months. Results: In the first group, improvement in all parameters was found to be significant (p<0.05). Second group exhibited statistical improvement in all outcome measures (p<0.05) except daytime pain (p >0.05). In the control group, improvements in BASMI, BASDAI and Beck depression scores were statistically significant (p<0.05). Intergroup comparisons showed a statistically significant difference among groups in all outcome measures at the sixth month follow-up (p<0.05). First and second groups which received GPR demonstrated greater improvement in BASMI, BASFI, BASDAI and Beck depression inventory scores compared with the control group (p<0.05). Conclusion:Our results show that GPR has beneficial effects on disease activity, quality of life, pain and depression in patients with AS. We could not detect any additional benefits of microwave therapy applied before exercise.