Evidence-Based Use of Injections and Alternative Therapies Print CE Course

Print Course

Course components are delivered as digital or printed products:

• 20 evidence-based practice articles from Sports Medicine Research
  
• Continuing education exam

Learning Objectives
After completing this course, you will be able to do the following:

• Identify patient populations that may be responsive to platelet-rich plasma injections.
  
• Identify patient populations that may be responsive to corticosteroid injections.
  
• Identify patient populations that may be responsive to hyaluronan injections.
  
• Explain to patients the benefits and risks of different types of injections for musculoskeletal conditions.

News reports have raised the public’s awareness about the therapeutic benefits and risks of injections, such as platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and corticosteroid injections. Injections, however, are not a cure-all. While a PRP injection may be beneficial in the treatment of tennis elbow, it often fails for people with Achilles tendinopathies. Evidence-Based Use of Injections and Alternative Therapies CE Course provides a comprehensive review of research on alternative therapies and injectable medicine to help clinicians recognize when injections can be optimally used to reduce the risk of unnecessary adverse reactions.

This continuing education course presents 20 research articles regarding benefits and risks of different types of injections—specifically platelet-rich plasma, corticosteroids, and hyaluronan—for treatment of various musculoskeletal injuries and conditions, with the goal of demonstrating how athletic trainers and therapists can use existing studies and apply the information to their own practice. Each reading in the course summarizes the research, offers a clinical appraisal, and indicates the clinical relevance of the study. The readings are followed by an exam containing 100 questions. Upon passing the exam, you may print out and submit a certificate for continuing education credits.

Evidence-Based Use of Injections and Alternative Therapies CE Course supports the initiative in the athletic training profession to integrate the best new research and evidence into clinical decision making, with the goal of improving patient outcomes.

Audience

A continuing education course for certified athletic trainers seeking further education in evidence-based practice.

Table of Contents

Course Syllabus

Course Instructions

Learning Objectives

Article 1: Platelet-Rich Plasma Injections Do Not Improve Achilles Tendon Healing

Article 2: PRP Injections Are Not Effective for Chronic Achilles Tendinopathy

Article 3: Not So Fast With That PRP: Platelet-Rich Plasma for Hamstring Injuries

Article 4: Platelet-Rich Plasma: Is It Beneficial in Shoulder Surgery?

Article 5: PRP Injections for Chronic Rotator Cuff Tendinopathy

Article 6: What Is the Best Treatment Option for Calcific Tendinitis of the Rotator Cuff?

Article 7: What Is the Optimal Dose of Corticosteroids for Adhesive Capsulitis?

Article 8: PRP and Lateral Epicondylitis: The (Re)Search Continues

Article 9: The Questionable Long-Term Effectiveness of Physiotherapy and Corticosteroid Injections for Tennis Elbow

Article 10: PRP Outperforms Corticosteroid Injections for Lateral Epicondylitis

Article 11: Comparing PRP, Glucocorticoid, and Saline Injections for Lateral Epicondylitis

Article 12: PRP for Tendon and Ligament Injuries: Does It Work?

Article 13: A Review of the Efficacy and Safety of Corticosteroid and Other Injections

Article 14: The Benefits of Platelet-Rich Plasma on Fracture Healing

Article 15: PRP or Hyaluronate in the Management of Talar Osteochondral Lesions

Article 16: Do Hyaluronan Injections Improve Outcomes After Microfracture Procedures in the Ankle?

Article 17: Debating Early Viscosupplementation

Article 18: Hyaluronic Acid Versus PRP for Knee Osteoarthritis

Article 19: Not All PRP Preparations Are the Same: A Call for More Systematic Research

Article 20: PRP Preparations: Are You Getting What You Wanted?

Exam and Evaluation

Exam Answer Sheet

Exam

Course Evaluation

Certificate Information

About the Authors

About the Author

Jeffrey B. Driban, PhD, ATC, is an assistant professor in the division of rheumatology at Tufts University School of Medicine and a member of the special and scientific staff at Tufts Medical Center. The goal of his research is to explore novel biochemical and imaging markers to gain a better understanding of osteoarthritis pathophysiology and potential disease phenotypes.

Driban received his bachelor’s degree in athletic training from the University of Delaware. During his doctoral training at Temple University, he focused on various aspects of osteoarthritis (e.g., early pathophysiology in animal models, biochemical markers in joint fluid, systematic reviews of risk factors for osteoarthritis, survey of medication use among patients with osteoarthritis). In January 2010, he began a postdoctoral research fellowship in the division of rheumatology at Tufts Medical Center, where he continued his focus on osteoarthritis and learned new assessment strategies in magnetic resonance imaging.

Stephen Thomas, PhD, ATC, is an assistant professor at Temple University. Thomas received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in athletic training from Temple University. He then received his PhD in biomechanics and movement science from the University of Delaware. Before working at Neumann University, Thomas completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania in the department of orthopaedic surgery and biomedical engineering, where he received a Ruth L. Kirschstein Research Grant from the National Institutes of Health. He has served on several national committees and is the chair of the research committee for the American Society of Shoulder and Elbow Therapists.

Thomas continues to be active in the area of research, participating as a manuscript reviewer for several peer-reviewed journals. He is on the executive board for Athletic Training and Sports Health Care. He also was an ad hoc grant reviewer for the EATA and is the cofounder of a website dedicated to the summary of sports medicine research called Sports Medicine Research (www.sportsmedres.org). Thomas has numerous peer-reviewed publications and abstracts on shoulder adaptations resulting from overhead throwing and the basic science of rotator cuff injury and healing. He has also had several invited lectures throughout the United States in the area of overhead throwing.