Is a Heavy–Slow Resistance Exercise Program an Appropriate Treatment Approach for All Patients with Lateral Elbow Tendinopathy? Editorial
Member of Laboratory of Neuromuscular & Cardiovascular Study of Motion (LANECASM), Deptartment of Physiotherapy, Faculty of Health and Caring Sciences, University of West Attica, Agiou Spyridonos 28, Egaleo, 12243 Athens, Greece
J. Clin. Med. 2022, 11(6), 1556; https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm11061556
Submission received: 8 March 2022
/
Accepted: 9 March 2022
/
Published: 11 March 2022
(This article belongs to the Section Sports Medicine)
Heavy–slow resistance exercise programs are the most effective physiotherapy treatment approaches in lateral elbow tendinopathy (LET) management. However, many physiotherapists recommend neuromobilization, myofascial trigger point therapy, and cervical/thoracic mobilization, adjunct to a heavy–slow resistance exercise program in LET treatment. The questions that arise are when and why physiotherapists recommend the above three recommended physiotherapy maneuvers in LET, a painful overuse tendon condition.
The above three physiotherapy techniques are recommended in persistent LET (PLET). However, the use of the term PLET is not clear in the literature, since the medical society does not provide a definition for the term PLET. The use of the term PLET in the literature ranges from several (4–5) weeks to many (5–6) months after the first onset [1].
Physiotherapists recommend the above three physiotherapy methods in PLET because it is necessary to avoid marking PLET solely as a tendinopathy. PLET is a disorder with the involvement of the biochemical milieu at the extensor digitalis communis and the radial nerve [2]. In addition, myofascial trigger points co-exist with PLET, causing it or predisposing patients to it [3]. Finally, patients with PLET present cervical and thoracic spondylosis, even though the role of cervical and thoracic spine spondylosis in the prognosis of PLEP requires validation [4,5].
According to previous reported issues, a heavy–slow resistance exercise program cannot be used as monotherapy for the treatment of LET when LET is persistent. Neuromobilization, myofascial trigger point therapy, and cervical/thoracic mobilization have to be used as adjuncts to a heavy–slow resistance exercise program for the management of PLET.
The aim of this editorial is to encourage questions about the optimal treatment approach for PLET management, and help clinicians. A debate on this topic is most welcome.
Funding
This research received no external funding.
Conflicts of Interest
The author declares no conflict of interest.
References
- Dimitrios, S. Lateral elbow tendinopathy: Evidence of physiotherapy management. World J. Orthop. 2016, 7, 463–466. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Abhimanyu, V.; Ritika, P.; Osama, N.; Srishti, N.; Gita, H. Lateral epicondylitis: Are we missing out on radial nerve involvement? A cross-sectional study. J. Bodyw. Mov. Ther. 2021, 27, 352–357. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Shmushkevich, Y.; Kalichman, L. Myofascial pain in lateral epicondylalgia: A review. J. Bodyw. Mov. Ther. 2013, 17, 434–439. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Bisset, L.; Vicenzino, B. Physiotherapy management of lateral epicondylalgia. J. Physiother. 2015, 61, 174–181. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Coombes, B.; Bisset, L.; Vicenzino, B. Management of Lateral Elbow Tendinopathy: One Size Does Not Fit All. J. Orthop. Sports Phys. Ther. 2015, 45, 938–949. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. |
© 2022 by the author. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Share and Cite
MDPI and ACS Style
Stasinopoulos, D. Is a Heavy–Slow Resistance Exercise Program an Appropriate Treatment Approach for All Patients with Lateral Elbow Tendinopathy? Editorial. J. Clin. Med. 2022, 11, 1556. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm11061556
AMA Style
Stasinopoulos D. Is a Heavy–Slow Resistance Exercise Program an Appropriate Treatment Approach for All Patients with Lateral Elbow Tendinopathy? Editorial. Journal of Clinical Medicine. 2022; 11(6):1556. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm11061556
Chicago/Turabian StyleStasinopoulos, Dimitrios. 2022. "Is a Heavy–Slow Resistance Exercise Program an Appropriate Treatment Approach for All Patients with Lateral Elbow Tendinopathy? Editorial" Journal of Clinical Medicine 11, no. 6: 1556. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm11061556
Note that from the first issue of 2016, this journal uses article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.
