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Rehabilitation Practice and Science

Translated Title

手術修復後阿基里氏腱超音波影像之臨床應用

Abstract

Background and purpose: Ultrasonography is an accurate and non-invasive imaging tool for assessing a ruptured Achilles tendon. This study attempts to correlate the sonographic appearances of surgically repaired Achilles tendons with their clinical outcomes.Methods: Ten patients (3 men and 7 women) with surgically repaired Achilles tendons were enrolled in this study. All patients had unilateral Achilles tendon ruptures related to sports injuries. All were treated by the same orthopedic surgeon at a University Hospital, from January 1990 to September 2000. Patients had a mean age of 47.2 years (range: 22-66). Mean post-surgical duration was 6.0 years (range: 2.1-12.1). All patients had good Achilles functioning at their examinations. Ultrasonographic examination was carried out with a 10 MHz linear-array ultrasound transducer. Continuity, thickness, echogenicity, vascularity and mobility of the repaired tendons were assessed. The subjects' normal tendons were also examined as controls. Results: All repaired Achilles tendons showed good sonographic continuity. Most had reduced echogenicity, and focal hypoechogenic areas were noted in 4 cases. None had increased vascularity. However, the diameters of the repaired tendons were significant thicker than controls (8.48±1.96mm vs. 4.90±0.54mm, p＜ 0.01). Only one subject had ultrasonographic morphology similar to her uninjured side, and she also had excellent mobility in her repaired tendon. All 10 patients had good clinical Achilles tendon performance. Conclusions: Morphological changes in repaired Achilles tendons persist for many years. There was no correlation between sonographic appearance and clinical outcome.

Language

English

First Page

23

Last Page

30

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