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Ultrasound Probe Pressure on the Intratendon Doppler Signal in Patellar Tendinopathy

Not Applicable
Completed
Conditions
Patellar Tendinitis
Interventions
Procedure: Intratendon vascularization
Registration Number
NCT04682496
Lead Sponsor
Cardenal Herrera University
Brief Summary

In the sports field, patellar tendinopathy is, as a pathology, one of the main concerns for athletes, both because of its incidence and because of the difficulty involved in their recovery. At the ultrasound level, tendinopathies can be divided, depending on the presence or absence of an intratendon Doppler signal, into hypervascular or hypovascular tendinopathy. Its classification is, today and clinically speaking, merely qualitative through the observation of the explorer. The ultrasound evaluation is carried out through a probe that is placed on the patient's skin, the procedure to be followed to obtain a vascular image is merely operator-dependent, that is, the position of the probe, the pressure exerted on the skin or even ultrasound optimization parameters can drastically modify the results.

Due to high pressure on the probe, the intratendon Doppler signal may be diminished in the quantitative variables of area, number of signals, pixel intensity, perimeter, solidity, perfusion index, circularity, major and minor diameter.

From a certain pressure on the probe, the intratendon Doppler signal can be drastically altered.

This study will try to evaluate the influence of the pressure exerted by the examiner with the probe on the quantitative variables of the intratendon Doppler signal in patellar tendinopathy.

To carry out the study, a single group with patellar tendinopathy will be established. Ultrasound evaluations with Doppler mode will be performed on the tendon using different probe pressures, monitoring the applied force and recording the images obtained for later analysis.

Detailed Description

Not available

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
COMPLETED
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
30
Inclusion Criteria
  • Acceptance of participation in the study.
  • Diagnosis of patellar tendinopathy with the presence of an intratendon Doppler signal.
  • Subjects between the ages of 18 and 65.
Exclusion Criteria
  • Present some type of surgical intervention in the region to be explored that could alter in some way the ultrasound evaluation.
  • Refer vascular pathology or the intake of medication that may alter blood flow or density.
  • Having been treated with sclerosing techniques that can alter the perfusion or vascular resistance of the tendon tissue.

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
SINGLE_GROUP
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
intratendon vascularizationIntratendon vascularizationIntratendon vascularization will be quantified using a proprietary methodology using ImageJ 1.47v image analysis software, determining the different variables related to the Doppler signal within an intratendon region of interest.
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
number of signals (n)during intervention

number of intratendon doppler signals (unit)

Perimeter (mm)during intervention

perimeter of the intratendon Doopler signal (mm)

Solidityduring intervention

measures the density of an object (0-1 Units on a scale)

Resistance indexduring intervention

resistance index of intratendon Doppler signals (0-1 Units on a scale)

Forceduring intervention

force applied by the probe on the knee during the scan (N)

major diameter (mm)during intervention

major diameter of the intratendon Doppler signal (mm)

Area (mm^2)during intervention

intratendon Doppler signal area (mm\^2)

Average pixel intensity (0-255 Units on a scale)during intervention

average pixel color intensity (0-255 Units on a scale)

minor diameter (mm)during intervention

minor diameter of the intratendon Doppler signal (mm)

Circularityduring intervention

measure of roundness or circularity, area-to perimeter ratio. (0-1 Units on a scale)

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Age (years)Post-intervention

subject's age (years)

Time of evolution (months)months

time since the patient had the first symptoms (months)

Pain locationImmediately pre-intervention

Location of pain in the patellar tendon (lower pole of the patella-body of the tendon-insertion in the anterior tuberosity of the tibia)

hours of training (hours)Immediately pre-intervention

Current training hours per week (hours). This question is asked just before the intervention in order to relate the results of the Doppler quantification with the hours of training performed

Dominancepost-intervention

Dominant leg (right-left)

Victorian Institute of Sport Assessment-Patella (VISA-P)Immediately pre-intervention

Knee pain and function rating scale (0-100 Units on a scale). The maximum score possible is 100 points and represents an asymptomatic athlete who can fully engage in sports. The theoretical minimum is 0 point. The test is carried out just before the intervention to relate the results of the Doppler quantification with the severity of the pain.

Time without training (months)Immediately pre-intervention

time without training (months). This question is asked just before the intervention.

Sex (female or male)post-intervention

subject's sex (female or male)

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Ceu Cardenal Herrera University

🇪🇸

Elche, Alicante, Spain

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