scholarly journals Minimally Invasive Stripping for Achilles Tendon: A Novel Option to Treat the Tendinopathy of the Main Body

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-5
Author(s):  
Nicola Maffulli ◽  
Rocco Aicale ◽  
Annarita Fraccascia ◽  
Nicola Poeta
2017 ◽  
Vol 56 (5) ◽  
pp. 938-942 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicola Maffulli ◽  
Francesco Oliva ◽  
Gayle D. Maffulli ◽  
Alessio Giai Via ◽  
Nikolaos Gougoulias

2016 ◽  
Vol 37 (12) ◽  
pp. 1333-1342 ◽  
Author(s):  
Prashant N. Gedam ◽  
Faizaan M. Rushnaiwala

Background: The objective of this study was to report the results of a new minimally invasive Achilles reconstruction technique and to assess the perioperative morbidity, medium- to long-term outcomes, and functional results. Methods: Our series was comprised 14 patients (11 men and 3 women), with a mean age of 45.6 years at surgery. Each patient had a chronic Achilles tendon rupture. The mean interval from rupture to surgery was 5.5 months (range, 2-10). The mean total follow-up was 30.1 months (range, 12-78). All patients were operated with a central turndown flap augmented with free semitendinosus tendon graft and percutaneous sutures in a minimally invasive approach assisted by endoscopy. The patients underwent retrospective assessment by clinical examination, the American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society (AOFAS) ankle and hindfoot score, and the Achilles Tendon Total Rupture Score (ATRS). Paired t tests were used to assess the preoperative and postoperative AOFAS scores, ATRS scores, and ankle range of motion. Results: The length of the defect ranged from 3 to 8 cm (mean, 5.1), while the length of the turndown flap ranged from 8 to 13 cm (mean, 10.1). The mean AOFAS score improved from 64.5 points preoperatively to 96.9 points at last follow-up. The mean ATRS score improved from 49.4 preoperatively to 91.4 points at last follow-up. None of the patients developed a wound complication. No patient had a rerupture or sural nerve damage. Conclusion: All patients in our study had a favorable outcome with no complications. We believe that with this triple-repair technique, one can achieve a strong and robust repair such as in open surgery while at the same time reducing the incidence of complications. Level of Evidence: Level III, retrospective comparative study.


2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 2473011418S0016
Author(s):  
Daniel Bohl ◽  
Eric Barnard ◽  
Kamran Movassaghi ◽  
Kamran Hamid ◽  
Adam Schiff

Category: Sports Introduction/Purpose: The rate of wound complications following traditional open Achilles tendon repair is reported at 7-8%. In an effort to reduce the rate of wound complications, orthopaedic surgeons have adopted novel minimally invasive techniques. The purpose of this study is to characterize the rate of wound and other early complications following a minimally invasive Achilles tendon repair, to identify any factors associated with increased risk. Methods: The postoperative courses of 55 patients who underwent minimally invasive Achilles tendon repair by two surgeons at separate academic medical centers were retrospectively reviewed. Repair technique was similar in all cases, making use of the same commercially available suture-guidance jig, silicone-impregnated deep suture material, and locking stitch technique. However, 31 procedures used a longitudinal incision and a tourniquet (one surgeon’s preference), while 24 procedures used a transverse incision and no tourniquet (the second surgeon’s preference). Of the 24 procedures using transverse incisions, 2 had to be converted to L-shaped incisions to achieve better access to the tendon. The rates of early complications within 3 months after surgery were characterized and compared between patients with differing procedural characteristics. Results: Of the 55 patients included in the study, 2 (3.6%) developed wound complications. Both wound complications appeared to be reactions to the deep suture material (see Table 1 for details). There was no statistical difference in the rate of wound complications between patients in the longitudinal incision/tourniquet group and patients in the transverse incision/no tourniquet group (6.5% versus 0.0%; p=0.499). Three patients (5.5%) developed sural neuropraxia, which manifested as mild-to-moderate subjective numbness with sensation remaining intact to light touch. There were no cases of re-rupture. At 3-month follow-up, all 55 patients had intact Thompson tests and well-healed wounds. Conclusion: The rate of wound complications following minimally invasive Achilles repair is low at 3.6%. The present study could not demonstrate a difference in risk for wound complications between patients treated with a longitudinal incision and tourniquet and patients treated with a transverse incision and no tourniquet. The wound complications we observed were primarily attributable to inflammatory reactions to the silicone-impregnated deep suture material. Patients should be counseled that although risk for wound complications may be lower with minimally invasive techniques, such techniques do risk sural neuropraxia and deep suture reaction. Further prospective analysis is warranted.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Krzysztof Ficek ◽  
Paweł Gwiazdoń ◽  
Jolanta Rajca ◽  
Grzegorz Hajduk

Abstract Background: Subcutaneous, spontaneous, complete ruptures of the Achilles tendon are usually caused indirectly by trauma associated with rapid movement. When minimally invasive Achilles tendon repair is performed, an active rehabilitation protocol can be implemented that allows for fast, measurable progress, reduced tissue atrophy, and an improved range of motion, thereby reducing pain and increasing patients’ overall physical well-being. However, overestimating the effectiveness of rehabilitative interventions can lead to arbitrary advancements in rehabilitation that significantly exceed the permitted levels of daily or professional activity. This issue can lead to various side effects and slow rehabilitation. The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of adverse effects on objective outcomes after minimally invasive Achilles tendon repair.Methods: The study included 36 individuals with complete Achilles tendon rupture who underwent the percutaneous Ma-Griffith technique. The same rehabilitation protocol was used.Results: Five side effects were identified during rehabilitation: deformation of the repair construct (DRC), irritation of the sural nerve (SNI), morning ankle stiffness (MAS), edema of the soft tissue around the tendon (OST) and suture knots. DRC and MAS were associated with a longer time being required to achieve full ankle range of motion. SNI and OST were associated with a longer time being required to meet the criteria for dynamic training. None of the side effects were related to the isokinetic strength of the ankle plantar and dorsiflexors.Conclusions: The incidence of the assessed side effects in the postoperative period is not related to the type of activity, whether it is professional or amateur. Among the identified side effects, deformation of the regenerated shape of the heel tendon and MAS cause a delay in the recovery of full ankle range of motion. Calf nerve irritation and soft tissue swelling increase the time it takes to meet the criteria for starting dynamic training.Trial registration:The study was approved by the ethics committee of the Academy of Physical Education in Katowice (no. 13/2007)


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peng zhao ◽  
Dawei Sun ◽  
Yaru Xiong ◽  
Ribo Zhuo

AbstractIntroductionThe incidence of Achilles tendon rupture shows a gradually increasing trend, which is mainly managed by minimally invasive treatment due to its advantages, such as low wound infection rate. At present, the firmness of the commonly applied minimally invasive suture method for Achilles tendon remains controversial. Our research group has developed a novel suture method for Achilles tendon, which has achieved favorable clinical outcomes. Therefore, this experiment aimed to explore the optimal approach to repair Achilles tendon rupture through comparing the biomechanical strength of the commonly used Achilles tendon suture methods currently.Materials and methods6 fresh frozen human cadaveric Achilles tendon specimens were sutured by three kinds of technique, and were tested through the cyclical loading after repair.ResultsResults of cyclical loading showed that, the repair using the new technique was stronger after 10 cycles, 1000 cycles, and rupture. Moreover, the new technique had displayed superior anti-deformation strength to that of the Ma-Griffith technique.ConclusionsOur experimental results demonstrate that, the new technique proposed by our research group can attain comparable biomechanical properties to those of the Krachow technique. However, the sample size in this study is small, and further clinical trials are warranted.


2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 269-273
Author(s):  
Vinicius Oliveira ◽  
Sérgio Prata

Objective: To assess the degree of postoperative satisfaction of patients with acute Achilles tendon rupture who underwent surgical reconstruction by a minimally invasive technique using Tenolig®. Methods: A retrospective observational study was conducted with 18 patients with acute Achilles tendon rupture diagnosed by a positive Thompson test who underwent surgery. Outcomes were assessed using the American  arthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) score and the Foot Function Index (FFI). Furthermore, quantitative variables were descriptively treated, and patients’ age was correlated with FII and AOFAS score using Spearman’s correlation coefficient at a significance level of 5%. Results: Patients underwent surgery from one to six days after injury and were discharged one day later. Only one patient had a superficial postoperative infection. Patients’ AOFAS scores ranged from 75 to 100 points, and FFI ranged from 0 to 20%. The patient withsuperficial postoperative infection had an AOFAS score and a FFI of 75 points and 20%, respectively. Conclusion: Percutaneous repair of complete Achilles tendon rupture with Tenolig® resulted in high functional scores and a low rate of complications. Level of Evidence IV; Therapeutic Studies; Case Series.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yongliang Yang ◽  
Honglei Jia ◽  
Wupeng Zhang ◽  
Shihong Xu ◽  
Fu Wang ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Minimally invasive repair is a better option for Achilles tendon rupture with low re-rupture and wound-related complications than conservative treatment or traditional open repair. The major problem is sural nerve injury. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect and advantage of the intraoperative ultrasonography assistance for minimally invasive repair of the acute Achilles tendon rupture.Methods: A retrospective study was performed on 36 cases of acute Achilles tendon rupture treated with minimally invasive repair assisted with intraoperative ultrasonography from January 2015 to December 2017. The relationship of the sural nerve and small saphenous vein was confirmed on the preoperative MRI. The course of the small saphenous vein and sural nerve were identified and marked by intraoperative ultrasonography. The ruptured Achilles tendon was repaired with minimally invasive Bunnell suture on the medial side of the SSV.Results: All patients were followed up for at least 12 months. No sural nerve injury or other complications was found intraoperatively and postoperatively. All the patients returned to work and light sporting activities at a mean of 12.78±1.40 weeks and 17.28±2.34 weeks, respectively. The Mean AOFAS scores improved from 59.17±5.31 preoperatively to 98.92±1.63 at the time of 12 months follow-up. There was statistically significant difference (P<0.001). No patient complained a negative effect on their life.Conclusions: The minimally invasive repair assisted with intraoperative ultrasonography can yield good clinical outcomes, less surgical time and less complications, especially sural nerve injury. It is an efficient, reliable and safe method for acute AT rupture.


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