A control study of the radial extracorporeal shock wave therapy for treatment of stenosing tenosynovitis at the radial styloid

Objective To investigate the effectiveness and safety of radial extracorporeal shock waves therapy (RSWT) in treating stenosing tenosynovitis at the radial styloid.Methods Forty-seven patients with stenosing tenosynovitis at the radial styloid were randomly divided into the treatment group(32 cases) and control group (15 cases).Patients in the treatment group received three sessions of RSWT,while those in the control group received conservative therapy with Votalin emulsion and local massage.Visual analog scale (VAS) was used to evaluate the extent of pain before the therapy and 1 or 4 weeks after the last therapy session.Results In the treatment group pain was alleviated and wrist function was improved.The VAS improved from (7.12 ±1.74) prior therapy to (2.16 ± 1.05) and (0.50 ± 0.71) 1 week and 4 weeks after the therapy,respectively.The difference before and after the treatment was significant (P ＜ 0.05).The VAS improved from (6.60 ±1.72) prior therapy to (4.06± 1.83) and (3.46±2.23) 1 week and 4 weeks after the therapy respectively in the control group.The difference before and after the treatment was significant (P ＜ 0.05),while the VAS scores at 1 week and 4 weeks after the therapy were not different(P ＞ 0.05).Conclusion RSWT is a new treatment option for stenosing tenosynovitis at the radial styloid that has such advantages as being effective,simple,atraumatic and safe. Key words: Tenosynovitis; Pain; Radial extracorporeal shock waves