Hydrodilatation: The effective treatment modality in adhesive capsulitis

Abstract

Introduction: Adhesive capsulitis of the shoulder joint is the commonly seen condition by the orthopedic surgeon. Hydrodilatation (HD) has been used as one of the treatment options in the management of adhesive capsulitis but with variable results. The aim of this prospective interventional study was to assess the functional outcome using the HD technique. Materials and Methods: Forty-one patients with adhesive capsulitis who were managed with HD technique and were meeting the inclusion criteria were included in the study. Patients were evaluated before the intervention and at the regular follow-up after the treatment using the constant score for functional assessment and Visual Analog Scale (VAS) for pain. Results: Seventeen (41.5%) patients were male and 24 (58.5%) were female. The mean age of the patients was 54.75 years (range 29–75 years). Eight out of 41 (19.5%) were patient with diabetes. At the final follow-up of 13.48 months (range 12–16 months), the mean constant score improved significantly from the preintervention level of 29.85 ± 9.09 to 82.02 ± 8.147 (P = 0.001), whereas the median VAS improved from before the intervention level of 8 (range 05–10) to 1 (range 0–3), respectively. Conclusions: HD technique yield satisfactory functional outcome and is an effective treatment modality in the management of adhesive capsulitis.

Keywords

• adhesive capsulitis
• hydrodilatation
• shoulder joint