Local Autologous Blood Injection Versus Corticosteroid Injection in the Treatment of Lateral Epicondylitis- A Prospective Comparative Study

Background: Lateral epicondylitis, also known as tennis elbow, is characterized by pain and tenderness at the lateral epicondyle of the humerus that worsens with grip and dorsiflexion of the wrist against resistance.Methods: This prospective study was carried out at our institution from July 2013 to June 2014, with approval from the ethical committee.Sixty patients with clinically diagnosed lateral epicondylitis were divided into two groups: Group A received local autologous blood, and Group B received local corticosteroid injections.Patients were evaluated using the Thomsen provocative test with Visual Analogue Scale, patient-rated tennis elbow evaluation score, and maximal grip strength at baseline (before injection) and 4 weeks, 12 weeks, and 24 weeks after injection.The statistical analysis used paired and unpaired t-tests, with significance set at p<0.05.Results: Both treatment groups showed significant improvements in pain and function at 24 weeks compared to baseline.However, Group B (corticosteroid injection) demonstrated superior short-term outcomes at 4 weeks in pain reduction and grip strength.In contrast, Group A (autologous blood injection) exhibited better long-term outcomes at 24 weeks with statistically significant improvements in pain reduction (71.3% vs. 45.5%),patient-rated tennis elbow evaluation scores (50.67% vs. 37.72%), and grip strength (24.19% vs. 13.69%)compared to Group B. Conclusion: Autologous blood injection therapy appears to be a promising treatment option for lateral epicondylitis, offering superior long-term outcomes compared to corticosteroid injection.While corticosteroid injection showed initial advantages in short-term pain relief and grip strength, autologous blood injection resulted in sustained improvements over the 24-week followup period.These findings support autologous blood injection as a preferred treatment option due to its effectiveness and lower recurrence rates, suggesting its consideration in clinical practice for managing lateral epicondylitis.