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Zissen et al.
Imaging of High Hamstring Tendinopathy
Musculoskeletal Imaging
Clinical Perspective
A
cute strains of the mid and distal a computerized search of medical records and im-
hamstring myotendinous com- aging reports at our institution, searching for the
plex are common athletic inju- terms “hamstring,” “MRI,” “ultrasound,” and
ries [1–5]. Proximal hamstring “corticosteroid injection.” Patients undergoing im-
tendon pathologic abnormalities, including aging and injection of hamstring disorders in the
tendon degeneration, partial tearing, and mid or distal thigh or about the knee were exclud-
peritendinous inflammatory reaction, are ed. This search identified 65 patients who received
less common [6]. These abnormalities are ultrasound-guided proximal hamstring injections
grouped clinically as “high hamstring tendi- between January 2002 and December 2008. There
nopathy,” and patients usually present with were 28 men (43.1%) and 37 women (56.9%) with
subacute onset of deep buttock or thigh pain a mean age of 37.4 years (range, 19–65 years). For
that is exacerbated by repetitive activity, such 35 patients, MRI was performed at our facility and
as long-distance running, and often is aggra- images were available to review. All patients had
vated by sitting. In many of these patients, ultrasound images available for review.
conservative management is ineffective, and
MRI is performed to confirm the diagnosis, Image Review
to grade the extent of injury, or to search for Two authors reviewed the MRI and ultrasound
alternative explanations. In cases where MRI studies for all patients. MR studies included small
Keywords: corticosteroid, hamstring, MRI, percutaneous establishes an abnormality at the hamstring field-of-view (~24–28 cm) T1- and T2-weight-
injection, tendinopathy, ultrasound
origin, or where MRI findings are normal ed fat-suppressed images in three planes using a
DOI:10.2214/AJR.09.3674 but clinical suspicion is high, we have per- phased-array coil at 1.5 T. MR images were re-
formed ultrasound-guided injections of cor- viewed for findings of peritendinous fluid or ede-
Received September 23, 2009; accepted after revision ticosteroids and local anesthetic at the ham- ma (peritendinitis), tendinopathy, partial tear, and
March 17, 2010.
string origin. bone marrow edema in the ischial tuberosity. Ul-
1
Department of Radiology, Stanford University School The goals of this article are to review our trasound images were reviewed for peritendinous
of Medicine, 300 Pasteur Dr., Stanford, CA 94305-5105. institution’s experience with MRI and ultra- fluid or edema, hypoechoic areas or thickening
Address correspondence to C. F. Beaulieu sound imaging of the proximal hamstring of the tendons consistent with tendinopathy, and
(beaulieu@stanford.edu). tendons and to establish the efficacy of ultra- echogenic foci consistent with calcifications. The
2
Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Stanford University
sound-guided corticosteroid injection as an mean (± SD) time between the MR and ultrasound
School of Medicine, Sports Medicine Center, Redwood integral part of overall patient management. studies was 90 ± 16 days (range, 0–171 days).
City, CA.
Materials and Methods Ultrasound-Guided Peritendinous Injection
AJR 2010; 195:993–998 Patient Selection Criteria All injections were performed by an experienced
This retrospective study was performed in com- musculoskeletal radiologist after obtaining written
0361–803X/10/1954–993
pliance with HIPAA regulations and with approval informed consent. Patients were asked to identi-
© American Roentgen Ray Society from our institutional review board. We performed fy, if possible, the site of maximum pain, either by
palpation or by performing resistance maneuvers. TABLE 1: Imaging Findings of Patients Receiving Ultrasound-Guided
With the patient in the prone position, a 6- to 10- Corticosteroid–Anesthetic Injection
MHz linear transducer was used to localize the Characteristic No. (%) of Patients
ischial tuberosity and proximal hamstring tendons
Ultrasound findings (n = 65 patients)
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Telephone Questionnaire
Review of clinical records showed that only a
small number of patients returned to the referring
physician for a follow-up visit; thus, no useful data
were available regarding efficacy of the injections
from this resource. We constructed a question-
naire and attempted to contact by telephone all 65
patients who received the ultrasound-guided per-
itendinous injection. A total of 38 patients were
reached and agreed to participate in the study. Fig. 1—20-year-old woman with proximal hamstring peritendinitis.
The mean time to follow-up was 4 years (range, A, Axial T2-weighted fat-suppressed image shows increased T2 signal intensity surrounding hamstring
tendons at their origin (arrowhead), suggestive of peritendinitis.
6 months to 8 years). Verbal informed consent B, Corresponding sagittal ultrasound image shows peritendinous fluid collection (arrows) superficial to
was obtained before asking the patients a series of hamstring tendon (t) at its origin at ischial tuberosity (it).
Fig. 3—45-year-old man with proximal hamstring Fig. 4—32-year-old man with hamstring injury. Fig. 5—28-year-old man with proximal hamstring
injury and bone marrow edema. Axial T2-weighted Sagittal ultrasound image shows small focus of tendinopathy. Sagittal ultrasound image shows
fat-suppressed image shows bone marrow edema hyperechogenicity consistent with calcification 22-gauge needle in place (arrowheads) for
(arrows) within ischial tuberosity adjacent to (arrow). it = ischial tuberosity. sonography-guided injection. Tip is immediately
hamstring tendon origin. There is also partial adjacent to superficial surface of hamstring tendon
undersurface irregularity of adjacent hamstring (t). it = ischial tuberosity.
tendons.
TABLE 2: Clinical Outcomes for 38 of 65 Patients Receiving Ultrasound- the source of the pain and focus our treat-
Guided Corticosteroid–Anesthetic Injection ments specifically to the injured muscle.
Characteristic No. (%) of Patients Adler et al. [11, 12] have described an ef-
fective method of ultrasound-guided anes-
Duration of symptoms before injection
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to be helpful in determining the extent of the approximates MRI in depicting acute ham- necessary to evaluate whether MRI could be
injury and detecting imaging findings sugges- string injuries where peritendinous fluid may useful in further characterizing their injury
tive of tendinopathy in patients with clinical be the predominant imaging finding, whereas and possibly predict which patients would
symptoms suggestive of high hamstring ten- MRI is more sensitive for follow-up of chron- benefit from intervention. In our discussions
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dinopathy. However, MRI was more sensitive ic hamstring injuries where tendinopathy may with study participants, we also observed a
overall in detecting both chronic and acute- be the predominant imaging finding. trend that those patients who had longer pe-
on-chronic hamstring pathologic abnormali- It is notable that neither MRI nor ultra- riods of rest and physical therapy before re-
ties, particularly peritendinitis. Peritendinous sound was highly sensitive in defining an ab- suming their prior activity level experienced
fluid or edema was seen in 62.9% of patients normality of the hamstring tendons as the re- longer lasting relief of symptoms. Subsequent
on MRI, compared with only 20% on ultra- sponsible pain generator. Nearly 23% of MR studies are necessary to further evaluate the
sound. As would be expected, MRI was the studies and 62% of ultrasound studies were relationship of rest to overall symptom reso-
only technique capable of detecting associ- considered normal; however, a substantial lution. A more in-depth understanding of the
ated bone marrow edema within the ischial number of patients with normal studies ben- pathophysiologic features of hamstring tendi-
tuberosity. At the same time, ultrasound was efited from corticosteroid injection. These nopathy and associated imaging findings may
able to detect calcifications in the hamstring results underscore the importance of having help predict which patients would benefit
tendons in a subset of patients, findings that a skilled clinician for patient assessment, re- most from intervention. A prospective study
were not apparent on MRI. The main advan- ferral to diagnostic imaging, and referral for correlating imaging findings with symptoms,
tage of ultrasound is the real-time imaging imaging-guided injection. response to treatment, and clinical outcomes
capability and excellent spatial resolution, In general, ultrasound-guided interventions would further elucidate the mechanism of
which allows targeted therapy. are increasingly being used as adjuvant treat- chronic tendon degeneration and repair. This
The ultrasound findings were compatible ment in chronic musculoskeletal pain [11, 13– knowledge may, in turn, benefit future studies
with the MRI findings in 13 of the 35 pa- 17, 21]. Our study confirms that ultrasound- looking at the potential of biologic therapies
tients, revealing peritendinitis in three pa- guided corticosteroid injections are a safe and for treatment of tendon pathologic abnormal-
tients and tendinopathy in four patients. In effective treatment in patients who are recalci- ities, such as platelet-rich plasma injection
six patients, the hamstring tendons appeared trant to conservative management. All but nine [22, 23], a technique for which there are no
unremarkable on both the ultrasound and of the patients in our study reported immediate published data on hamstring tendinopathy at
MRI studies. The imaging studies were dis- symptomatic improvement after injection of this time, to our knowledge.
cordant in 22 patients, with 20 studies show- the local anesthetic, confirming that the ham- This study has several limitations. We were
ing abnormal findings on MRI that were not string tendon was indeed the cause of their dis- unable to identify a matched control cohort
apparent on ultrasound (16 peritendinitis and comfort. No significant side effects or compli- of patients who did not receive corticosteroid
four tendinopathy). In two patients, there cations were reported by any of the patients injection. However, 79% of our patients had
were positive findings of peritendinous fluid undergoing injection. Furthermore, there was symptoms lasting longer than 6 months before
on ultrasound that were not apparent on the an excellent clinical response to corticosteroid the injection, thereby in principle serving as
MRI. However, these differences may be injection, with 50% of patients reporting mod- their own controls. The study was retrospec-
due, in part, to the time interval between the erate-to-complete resolution of their symptoms tive and relied on patient recall of symptoms
original MRI scan and subsequent ultra- for at least 1 month after the injection and dating back to 2002 in some cases. There was
sound. Although MRI is quite sensitive for 28.9% reporting complete and sustained reso- a variable time to follow-up for each patient,
detecting peritendinous edema, it is possible lution of symptoms postinjection. Even though and the time difference between MRI and ul-
in some cases that ultrasound might be able some patients did experience complete pain trasound studies was relatively long, owing
to detect small amounts of fluid that are not resolution after the injection, an adequate treat- to periods of conservative therapy undertak-
obvious on MRI. Similarly, the absence of ment plan should also include physical therapy en between MRI diagnosis and ultrasound-
findings on ultrasound may be due to resolu- and activity modification to allow healing. In guided injection. Furthermore, the subjective
tion of edema during the time interval be- the population reported here, inciting activities nature of the pain questionnaire used made
tween the MRI and ultrasound. To provide such as long-distance running or sprinting were it difficult to standardize the effectiveness of
rigorous comparison on the sensitivity of curtailed but patients were engaged in cross- the procedure across the patients. Although
MRI and ultrasound, a much shorter time in- training sports or deep water pool running to the results were favorable, too few patients re-
terval between studies would be needed. maintain overall fitness. plied to the survey to allow rigorous statisti-
Our findings suggest that MRI is more sen- The only imaging characteristic that was cal confirmation of our findings. As a result,
sitive overall than ultrasound in the diagnosis associated with a statistically significant im- our findings do not help refine selection crite-
of proximal hamstring pathologic abnormal- provement in outcomes was the absence of ria for patients to undergo proximal hamstring
ities. However, ultrasound imaging is more findings on ultrasound. We hypothesize that injection. Therefore, a prospective, random-
readily available and may be considered a those patients with normal ultrasound find- ized study evaluating the MRI and ultrasound
reasonable alternative for initial diagnosis ings likely had more mild injuries that per- imaging findings and efficacy of corticoster-
and treatment, reserving MRI for evaluating haps would have resolved on their own over oid injections would be beneficial to evaluate
cases where the first attempt at therapeutic time. In these patients, MRI would not be the true potential of this procedure.
intervention is not effective. This is consis- useful to further characterize their condition. In conclusion, the use of ultrasound-guid-
tent with the study conducted by Unverferth Conversely, in patients with abnormal ultra- ed injections of corticosteroid and local an-
and Olix [19], who reported that ultrasound sound examinations, further trials would be esthetic is a safe and effective technique that
can provide both immediate and long-term 5. Malliaropoulos N, Papalexandris S, Papalada A, short-acting anesthetic with corticosteroid in lo-
symptomatic relief of proximal hamstring Papacostas E. The role of stretching in rehabilita- cal injections of overuse injuries? A prospective,
pain in appropriately referred patients. Ad- tion of hamstring injuries: 80 athletes follow-up. randomized, double-blind study. Int J Sports Med
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techniques allow accurate needle localization 6. Fredricson M, Moore W, Guillet M, Beaulieu C. 16. Sofka CM, Collins AJ, Adler RS. Use of ultra-
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Acknowledgment 725 19. Unverferth LJ, Olix ML. The effect of local ste-
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