Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Volume 90, Issue 1 , Pages 1-8, January 2009

Sensorimotor Deficits Remain Despite Resolution of Symptoms Using Conservative Treatment in Patients With Tennis Elbow: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Presented as a podium presentation to the World Confederation for Physical Therapy International Congress, June 3, 2007, Vancouver, Canada.

  • Leanne M. Bisset, PhD

      Affiliations

    • University of Queensland, School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Division of Physiotherapy, Brisbane, Australia
    • Griffith University, School of Physiotherapy and Exercise Science, Gold Coast, Australia
    • ,
  • Michel W. Coppieters, PhD

      Affiliations

    • University of Queensland, School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Division of Physiotherapy, Brisbane, Australia
    • ,
  • Bill Vicenzino, PhD

      Affiliations

    • University of Queensland, School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Division of Physiotherapy, Brisbane, Australia
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorrespondence to Bill Vicenzino, PhD, Division of Physiotherapy, School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072 Australia

Abstract 

Bisset LM, Coppieters MW, Vicenzino B. Sensorimotor deficits remain despite resolution of symptoms using conservative treatment in patients with tennis elbow: a randomized controlled trial.

Objectives

To evaluate the time course of sensorimotor deficits in lateral epicondylalgia (LE; tennis elbow) and how these deficits may be influenced by common conservative treatments.

Design

Single-blind randomized controlled trial.

Setting

University laboratory, Australia.

Participants

A total of 198 participants with unilateral LE of a minimum 6 weeks duration and normative data from a group of 40 healthy participants.

Interventions

Participants with LE were randomly assigned to physical therapy, corticosteroid injection, or a wait-and-see approach with ergonomic advice.

Main Outcome Measures

Upper-limb reaction time (simple, 1-choice and 2-choice reaction time) and speed of movement were assessed at baseline and 6 and 52 weeks of follow-up.

Results

Patients with LE exhibited delayed reaction times (P<.001) and slower movement speeds (P<.001) for both the affected and unaffected arm at baseline, compared with normative data. Despite some improvement over time, significant bilateral deficits remained compared with healthy participants, with no significant differences between the affected and unaffected arm. Overall, there was no significant difference between the 3 treatment groups over time.

Conclusions

Sensorimotor deficits remain relatively unchanged over time and are present bilaterally in patients with unilateral LE. Treatment did not influence the time course of the sensorimotor deficits. This prompts conjecture as to the relationship and clinical relevance of sensorimotor deficits in LE. It should be noted that treatment evaluated in this study did not specifically target sensorimotor function, and further investigation into the significance of sensorimotor deficits in patients with LE is required.

Key Words: Sensorimotor, Reaction time, Rehabilitation, Tennis elbow

List of Abbreviations: CI, confidence interval, LE, lateral epicondylalgia (tennis elbow), SRT, simple reaction time

 

 Supported by The University of Queensland and the National Health and Medical Research Council (Primary Care Research), Australia (grant no. 252710).

 No commercial party having a direct financial interest in the results of the research supporting this article has or will confer a benefit on the authors or on any organization with which the authors are associated.

 Reprints are not available from the author.

PII: S0003-9993(08)01544-X

doi:10.1016/j.apmr.2008.06.031

Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Volume 90, Issue 1 , Pages 1-8, January 2009

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