The combined intervention of extracorporeal shock-wave therapy + Hyaluronic acid injections (E + Hy) appeared to be more effective than extracorporeal shock-wave therapy alone (ESWT-al) in treating painful rotator cuff (RC) tendinopathy in both genders, as per a recent study published in BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders. In a cohort of people with RC tendinopathy, Raffaello Pellegrino et al. sought to examine the effectiveness of 2 distinct therapeutic rehabilitation techniques, E + Hy and ESWT-al, with a focus on gender differences in therapeutic response.

RC tendinopathy subjects (n = 53) who received the Shoulder Pain and Disability Index (SPADI) questionnaire, a shoulder ultrasound exam, a clinical assessment, and the Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) for pain at the baseline, one-month (T1), and two-month follow-ups (T2) were enrolled. Medical records of enrolled participants were examined. In this retrospective longitudinal cohort study, the NRS and the SPADI in the entire study group decreased significantly from baseline to T1 and likewise from baseline to T2 comparisons.

Subjects in the E + Hy group exhibited a slight but clinically meaningful decrease in both SPADI and NRS scores at T1, but these changes became more pronounced at T2. There was a gender difference in SPADI and NRS, with female patients appearing to respond better to the combined E + Hy strategy than to the ESWT-al method. Both male and female patients with RC tendinopathy appear to respond more effectively to a combination of E + Hy injections than to ESWT-al. Additionally, male subjects who had ESWT alone experienced higher benefits than female subjects. However, to support and reinforce these findings, more robust randomized trials are needed.