New Study Finds Shock-Wave Therapy for Unhealed Fractured Bones as Effective as Surgery

New Study Finds Shock-Wave Therapy for Unhealed Fractured Bones as Effective
as Surgery

Non-Invasive, Low-Complication Treatment Helps Heal Fractures

ROSEMONT, Ill., Nov. 2 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- When fractured bones fail to
heal, a serious complication referred to as "nonunion" can develop. This
occurs when the process of bone healing is interrupted or stalled. According
to a new study published in the November 2009 issue of The Journal of Bone and
Joint Surgery (JBJS), certain cases involving nonunions respond very well to
shock-wave therapy. Researchers say this non-invasive treatment is equally
effective as surgery when it comes to healing the bone.

"We found that extracorporeal (external to body) shock-wave therapy was just
as effective as surgery in helping to heal and repair nonunions," said lead
author of the study Angelo Cacchio, MD, a physiatrist who conducted the study
with colleagues from the Division of Orthopaedic Surgery and the Department of
Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at San Salvatore Hospital in L'Aquila,
Italy.

Study authors say sparse surrounding vascular tissue and limited blood supply
can lead to a nonunion and can subsequently delay or prevent healing. This
complication -- a nonunion -- often is very difficult to treat.

Dr. Cacchio and his colleagues analyzed data from 126 patients who had
nonunions of the femur (thigh bone), tibia (shinbone), ulna (forearm) or
radius (forearm). Patients were randomly assigned to one of three groups and
all patient outcomes were evaluated from 2001 to 2004. The patients in the
three groups had similar demographic characteristics and similarly timed and
developed nonunions. The first two groups of patients received surgery to help
repair their fracture. The third received four shock-wave therapy sessions at
weekly intervals, with 4000 impulses per session.

The study found that shock-wave therapy:

-- Stimulated healing of the bone within six months; and

-- Provided a comparable outcome to surgery even two years following the
treatment.

"When we examined patients and compared their outcomes at three and six
months, initially those who received the shock-wave therapy actually felt
better than those who had surgery," explains Dr. Cacchio. "When we examined
patients at 12 and 24 months there were no significant differences in terms of
healing. Scans of the bones proved non-invasive shock-wave therapy worked
just as effectively as surgery."

Results of the study showed that nonunions had completely healed for
approximately 70% of all patients within six months.

Shock-wave therapy helps reduce pain and appears to induce a regeneration of
bone by activating and stimulating certain growth factors. The study found
that this appears to prompt a metabolic reaction similar to what occurs during
the natural bone-healing process.

"These findings are important because we have found that this non-invasive
therapy is a safe and simple alternative to surgery," notes Dr. Cacchio.
"This means orthopaedic surgeons and their patients now have more options to
help repair a fracture that does not respond to initial treatment."

Disclosure: The authors did not receive any outside funding or grants in
support of their research for or preparation of this work. Neither they nor a
member of their immediate families received payments or other benefits or a
commitment or agreement to provide such benefits from a commercial entity. No
commercial entity paid or directed, or agreed to pay or direct, any benefits
to any research fund, foundation, division, center, clinical practice, or
other charitable or nonprofit organization with which the authors, or a member
of their immediate families, are affiliated or associated.

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SOURCE American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons

Kristina Findlay +1-847-384-4034 findlay@aaos.org, or Lauren Pearson,
+1-847-384-4031 lpearson@aaos.org, both of American Academy of Orthopaedic
Surgeons