Management of recent onset tendon-related pain in a primary contact setting: A survey of practice

Mitham, Kieran; Mallows, Adrian; Yeowell, Gillian; Littlewood, Chris

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Tendon-related pain is a common and debilitating condition that affects a wide range of people. To inform future research, it is important to understand healthcare professional's current practice.

OBJECTIVES: To describe the practice of First Contact Practitioners (FCPs) and Other Clinicians (OCs) for recent onset tendon pain in a primary contact setting. The secondary aim was to understand if practice differed between the locations of pain.

DESIGN: Cross-sectional online survey

METHOD: The online survey asked for responses relating to one scenario of shoulder pain and one of Achilles pain. Except location of pain, the scenarios were identical. Responses were collected over a four-week period to December 2020. The Chi-Square test was used to analyse the difference in proportion of responses between FCPs and OCs, and between locations of pain.

RESULTS: 118 responses were received. Rotator Cuff Related Shoulder Pain (RCRSP) was preferred by 64/118 (54.2%) for the shoulder scenario. Achilles tendinopathy was the preferred term by 86/103 (83.5%) for the Achilles. FCPs were more likely to advise NSAIDs for both shoulder (p = 0.006) and Achilles (p = 0.046) scenarios than OCs. Amended duties were more likely to be advised for manual workers for the shoulder scenario compared to Achilles (p = <0.0001).

CONCLUSION: There were similarities in the management of recent onset tendon-related pain; the majority of respondents recommended against further investigations, steroid injections, and recommended exercise. Understanding whether these approaches are clinically effective requires further investigation.

Citation

Mitham, K., Mallows, A., Yeowell, G., & Littlewood, C. (2021). Management of recent onset tendon-related pain in a primary contact setting: A survey of practice. Musculoskeletal Care, 20(1), 86-98. https://doi.org/10.1002/msc.1556

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Mar 31, 2021
• Online Publication Date: May 1, 2021
• Publication Date: 2021-01
• Deposit Date: Nov 25, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Nov 29, 2024
• Journal: Musculoskeletal Care
• Print ISSN: 1478-2189
• Publisher: Wiley
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 20
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 86-98
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/msc.1556
• Keywords: evidence based practice, exercise, low back pain, management, musculoskeletal, patient education, physiotherapy, rehabilitation