Time to functional recovery after arthroscopic surgery for tennis elbow

Platelet rich plasma injections for lateral epicondylitis of the elbow reduce the need for surgical intervention

“…2 The surgical intervention used is either an open or arthroscopic release of the common tendon origin but should not be taken lightly as although surgery can produces a good outcome in terms of pain relief and function the rehabilitation period and postoperative recovery can be up to 6 months. 16 Elbow arthroscopy is also not a procedure without risk and has been shown to have an overall complication rate of 14% with major complications requiring further surgery at 5%. 17 Previously neurovascular injury was a main concern following elbow arthroscopy however more recent studies have shown newer techniques have reduced this risk significantly.…”

Arthroscopic Debridement Versus Platelet-Rich Plasma Injection: A Prospective, Randomized, Comparative Study of Chronic Lateral Epicondylitis With a Nearly 2-Year Follow-Up

“…Arthroscopic treatment, including ECRB tenotomy and/or debridement, 24 is a technically demanding procedure that has become popular over the past 10 years 24,46,47 because it improves elbow pain and function as effectively as open release. 26,27,48 Radiofrequency microtenotomy and percutaneous or endoscopic lateral release also provide satisfactory results. 27 Although several case series have reported favorable outcomes of arthroscopic lateral elbow release, 24,25,27 2 Cochrane database reviews (2002 and 2011) found that there is still insufficient evidence to support or refute the effectiveness of surgery for lateral elbow pain, 49,50 and assessment of the pros and cons of each technique suggests that none is superior by any measure.…”

“…23 Arthroscopic or open lateral release as well as other procedures (radiofrequency microtenotomy and percutaneous or endoscopic lateral release) can be considered when conservative treatment fails to provide pain relief and functional recovery. [24][25][26][27] Arthroscopic release can provide good to excellent outcomes in line with those of other surgical approaches but has the advantage of enabling treatment of any intra-articular conditions. 27 Two recent retrospective studies of the effects of PRP injections compared with open surgical release in recalcitrant lateral elbow tendinosis have found that PRP seems to provide better pain relief and function in the short and medium term 28 and that it provides similar clinical outcomes and rates of return to work to open surgery.…”

Arthroscopic surgical treatment of recalcitrant lateral epicondylitis – A series of 47 cases

“…Results obtained at the VAS are consistent with the literature, which shows slightly better results when the score is measured with the patient at rest than during activity with the upper limb. 14 …”