Achilles tendinosis is rare in adolescents and often associated with iatrogenic factors from improper initial management.A 15-year-old male athlete presented with chronic Achilles pain that worsened following repeated peritendinous injections.Magnetic resonance imaging revealed significant fusiform thickening and T2 hyperintensity.Treatment involved minimal debridement followed by augmentation with a bioinductive collagen implant (REGENETEN; Smith & Nephew).Postoperative care utilized a 2-week short leg cast followed by an accelerated rehabilitation protocol with a VACOped brace.At the 3-month follow-up, the patient was pain-free (visual analog scale, 0/10) and successfully returned to sports.Bioinductive scaffolds may provide a favorable biological environment for restoring tendon volume in young patients without the need for autologous grafting and its associated donor-site morbidity.
Baek et al. (2026) studied this question.