Comparative study to evaluate efficacy of prolotherapy using 25% dextrose and local corticosteroid injection in tennis elbow - A prospective study

Tennis elbow is a common painful condition with a prevalence rate of 1-3%. The condition starts as a micro-tear in extensor carpi radialis brevis and its degeneration because of repetitive overload. Conservative measures are undertaken initially because symptoms in most patients improve with time and rest. Adjunctive treatment includes steroid injection, autologous plasma, exercise, and prolotherapy. Dextrose prolotherapy by virtue of its multi-modal mechanism of action has emerged as a cost-effective treatment option for chronic musculoskeletal and arthritic pain. A total of 260 patients were included in the study and divided in two groups for administration of steroids or dextrose prolotherapy. The Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and Mayo Elbow Performance Scale (MEPS) scores were taken for patients at regular follow-up. All patients showed improvement in VAS score and MEPS score following dextrose prolotherapy as well as patients injected with steroids. Both prolotherapy and steroid injection offer adequate pain relief and functional outcome, although prolotherapy has been shown to be superior and given long-lasting results compared to steroid injection in management of tennis elbow.