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Analgesic effects of low-dose radiotherapy in greater trochanteric pain syndrome: results in a clinical series of 155 patients with recurrent or refractory symptoms

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Abstract

Purpose

This prospective study assessed the effects of low-dose radiotherapy in patients diagnosed with greater trochanteric pain syndrome (GTPS) with recurrent symptoms or refractory to previous conservative measures.

Methods

We evaluated a total of 155 patients (90.3% women, mean age 69 years). Most patients (n = 136) received 10 Gy (1 Gy/day/3 fractions per week on alternate days), but after recommendations of DEGRO guidelines published in 2015, the remaining 19 patients (12.2%) received 6 Gy (1 Gy/day/3 fractions per week on alternate days).

Results

At the pre-treatment visit, the mean (standard deviation, SD) visual analog scale (VAS) score was 8), which decreased to 5 (SD 2.2) after 1 month of the end of treatment and to 4 (SD 2.3) after 4 months. An objective symptom response with increased mobility, better sleep quality, and reduction of analgesic medication was found in 56% of patients at 1 month. In 129 patients (83.2%), there was a decrease of at least 1 point in the VAS score, and in 49 patients (29.0%), the VAS score was lower than 3. The mean length of follow-up was 45 months. The probability of maintaining the analgesic response estimated by the Kaplan-Meier method was 53% at 5 years.

Conclusion

Low dose radiotherapy effectively improved pain in the trochanteric area in most patients with recurrent or refractory GTPS, allowing a reduction in the need for analgesic medications and, more, importantly, better functioning and mobility. Further randomized studies in selected populations of GTPS are needed to define the treatment position of low-dose radiotherapy in this clinical setting.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank Marta Pulido, MD, PhD, for editing the manuscript and editorial assistance, and Ms. Lourdes Barragán for help in the collection of data.

Funding

This research received no external funding.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Radiation Oncology Department, Institut d’Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi I Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Hospital Clínic, University of Barcelona, C/ Villarroel 170, 08036, Barcelona, Spain

    Albert Biete

  2. Radiation Oncology Department, Hospital Clínic, Barcelona, Spain

    Izaskun Valduvieco, Carla Cases, Ángeles Rovirosa, Gabriela Oses, Joel Mases & Meritxell Mollà

  3. Orthopaedic Surgery Department, Hospital Clínic, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

    Jenaro Fernández-Valencia

  4. Anesthesiology Department, Pain Clinic, Hospital Clínic, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

    Luis Alfonso Moreno

  5. Radiology Department, Hospital Clínic, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

    Montserrat del Amo

Authors
  1. Albert Biete
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  2. Izaskun Valduvieco
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  3. Carla Cases
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  7. Ángeles Rovirosa
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  10. Meritxell Mollà
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Izaskun Valduvieco.

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Institutional review board statement

The study was conducted according to the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki, and approved by the Ethics Committee of Hospital Clínic of Barcelona, Spain.

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Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study.

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Biete, A., Valduvieco, I., Cases, C. et al. Analgesic effects of low-dose radiotherapy in greater trochanteric pain syndrome: results in a clinical series of 155 patients with recurrent or refractory symptoms. Clin Transl Oncol 24, 846–853 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12094-021-02730-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12094-021-02730-6

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