Arthroscopic therapy good for tennis elbow

CALGARY, Alberta, July 16 (UPI) -- Arthroscopic treatment is a good treatment option for lingering tennis elbow, according to a University of Pittsburgh study.

"This is the first longitudinal study of arthroscopic treatment of tennis elbow," lead investigator Dr. Champ L. Baker III, an orthopedic resident at the University of Pittsburgh, said in a statement. "The initial success from our original short-term study was maintained long term. I am happy to say that arthroscopic release is a good treatment option for lingering tennis elbow."

The study participants were enrolled through the Hughston Clinic in Columbus, Ga., where Baker's father and the senior study investigator, Dr. Champ L. Baker, Jr., practice orthopedic sports medicine surgery.

The researchers studied the long-term -- 130 month -- pain and functional scores of 30 patients who underwent arthroscopic release for tennis elbow.

The researchers found that arthroscopic treatment provided very good results in terms of long-term pain relief and functional restoration. There were no repeat surgeries or injections and 93 percent of the patients said that they would have the surgery again if needed, according to findings presented at the annual meeting of the American Orthopedic Society for Sports Medicine in Calgary, Alberta.