▎ WuXi AppTec content team editor
For many professional athletes, and sports enthusiasts, the biggest nightmare is a sudden sharp pain in the foot during intense exercise, and sometimes a special sound can be heard, which means that the Achilles tendon may be torn.
The Achilles tendon, which connects the muscles on the back of the calf to the calcane, is the most commonly torn tendon in the human body. But after a laceration occurs, which treatment is better? Is it surgery or a cast to aid rehabilitation?
To address this, a new study from the New England Journal of Medicine tracked 526 patients with Achilles tendon tears, mostly men with an average age of 39. Some of these patients underwent minimally invasive surgery, some underwent standard surgery, and some received non-surgical treatments such as physical therapy such as foot fixation. These patients are told to avoid strenuous activity for six months.
After about a year, the researchers followed all patients. They found that recovery varied slightly between patients who received different therapies. Among patients who did not undergo surgery, more people had re-injuries to the Achilles tendon, with about 6.2% experiencing the problem and 0.6% of patients who underwent surgery.
However, more patients undergo surgery report nerve damage, especially in minimally invasive surgery, compared with 2.8% and 0.6% of those who undergo standard surgery and those who do not have surgery.
Image credit: 123RF
According to the study, Matthew Costa, a professor at the University of Oxford, concluded: "For ordinary people who are not professional athletes, it is possible to consider noting surgery," noting that the benefits of surgery are reduced in the likelihood of re-injury, but also increase the risk of causing complications of infection.
Some people who have long realized that their Achilles tendon injuries and have not seen a doctor in time can opt for surgery because their Achilles tendons may not heal normally. The researchers point out that patients should have more discussions with their doctors to decide which approach is more suitable for them. When the Achilles tendon is ruptured, the body undergoes a natural healing process, but if the healing is not in the ideal position, the surgeon may have to repair it through surgery.
Resources:
[1] Heal Thyself: Most who tear Achilles tendon can skip surgery. Retrieved Apr 15th, 2022 from https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-04-thyself-achilles-tendon-surgery.html
[2] St le B. Myhrvold et al, Nonoperative or Surgical Treatment of Acute Achilles' Tendon Rupture, New England Journal of Medicine (2022). DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa2108447
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