Are Platelet Rich Plasma Injections More Effective in Tendinopathy or Enthesopathy?

Tendinopathies are very common in athletes. Traditionally, the first management is conservative, including analgesics, anti-inflammatory drugs, and physical therapy. In the last decade,Platelet-richplasma (PRP) products have been increasingly used, but theireffectiveness is still controversial. PRP is a plasma gel with high concentration of platelets, higher than that present in the blood, as clinical benefits have been shown when this concentration is at least 1,000,000/μl in 5ml of plasma. 

There is evidence that PRP provide good excellent outcomes in patients with tendon disorders, but few studies have reported on the use of PRP in patients with insertional tendinopathies of the elbow and patellar tendon (jumper’s knee). The primary endpoint of this retrospective study is to assess clinical and functional outcomes of patients with tendinopathies of the main body of the tendon and insertional tendinopathies who had undergone local injections of PRP.(Read More)