A single platelet rich plasma (PRP) injection is more effective than a single corticosteroid injection for improving pain and function in patients with chronic plantar fasciitis who haven’t responded to other conservative treatments, according to research from Nantucket, MA.
In a study presented this month at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, private practice orthopedic surgeon Raymond R. Monto, MD, randomized 40 patients to receive an ultrasound-guided injection of 3 cc of unactivated unbuffered PRP or 40 mg methylpred-
isolone at the site of pain.
Patients in both groups demonstrated significant improvement from baseline on the American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society (AOFAS) outcome measure. In patients who received the corticosteroid, however, the mean AOFAS score decreased from 81 at three months to 74 at six months and 58 at 12 months. In the PRP group, the mean score was 95, 94, and 94 at the same three timepoints.
“The striking thing for me is the durability of the results,” Monto said. –JBF
Source:
Monto RR. Platelet-rich plasma is more effective than cortisone for chronic severe plantar fasciitis. Presented at annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, San Francisco, February 2012: Abstract 51.
