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M u s c u l o s k e l e t a l I m a g i n g • C l i n i c a l Pe r s p e c t i ve

Zissen et al.
Imaging of High Hamstring Tendinopathy

Musculoskeletal Imaging
Clinical Perspective

High Hamstring Tendinopathy:


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MRI and Ultrasound Imaging


and Therapeutic Efficacy of
Percutaneous Corticosteroid
Injection
Maurice H. Zissen1 OBJECTIVE. The goals of this study were to review the MRI and sonographic findings in
Grant Wallace1 patients diagnosed clinically with high hamstring tendinopathy and to evaluate the efficacy of
Kathryn J. Stevens1 ultrasound-guided corticosteroid injections in providing symptomatic relief.
Michael Fredericson2 CONCLUSION. MRI is more sensitive than ultrasound in detecting peritendinous ede-
Christopher F. Beaulieu1 ma and tendinopathy at the proximal hamstring origin. Fifty percent of patients had symp-
tomatic improvement lasting longer than 1 month after percutaneous corticosteroid injection,
Zissen MH, Wallace G, Stevens KJ, Fredericson and 24% of patients had symptom relief for more than 6 months.
M, Beaulieu CF

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

AJR:195, October 2010 993


Zissen et al.

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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in both transverse and sagittal planes. Color Dop-


pler was used to identify and avoid visible vascular Peritendinitis (fluid or edema) 13 (20)
structures. Scanning laterally to the hamstring ori- Tendinopathy 11 (16.9)
gin in the sagittal plane, the sciatic nerve was simi- Calcifications 3 (4.6)
larly identified, and injections were performed me-
Normal 40 (61.5)
dially to this structure. A freehand technique was
used in the sagittal plane to guide the injection, first MRI findings (n = 35 patients)
using 1% lidocaine with a 1.5-inch-long 21-gauge Peritendinitis (fluid or edema) 22 (62.9)
needle. If this needle was sufficiently long to reach Tendinopathy 9 (25.7)
the hamstring tendons, the therapeutic mixture was
Bone marrow edema 7 (20)
injected through the same needle. In larger patients,
a 3-inch-long 20-gauge spinal needle was inserted Partial tear 7 (20)
after removal of the 1.5-inch needle. Normal 8 (22.9)
Two therapeutic mixtures were used in this
study. The first consisted of 1 mL of triamcino- subjective pain assessment questions that includ- findings on either MRI or ultrasound were statisti-
lone acetonide 40 (40 mg/mL) plus 5 mL of bupi- ed the degree of pain relief as well as duration of cally associated with improved outcomes.
vacaine. The second consisted of 1 mL of triam- symptom resolution. The patients were also asked
cinolone acetonide 40 (40 mg/mL) with 0.5 mL of questions related to the mechanism of injury, prior Results
dexamethasone sodium phosphate (4 mg/mL) and activity level, prior treatment techniques (includ- Imaging Results
5 mL of bupivacaine. The therapeutic mixture was ing medical management and physical therapy), The imaging findings observed on retro-
administered using a 21- or 20-gauge needle un- and any complications experienced as a result of spective review of 65 ultrasound studies and
der sterile conditions as described in the previous the procedure. 35 MRI studies are shown in Table 1. For ul-
paragraph. After needle placement, the therapeu- trasound, 40 (61.5%) of 65 patients showed
tic mixture was injected immediately superficial Statistical Analysis normal tendon thickness and echogenici-
to the hamstring tendons, and real-time sonog- We defined patients with “significant improve- ty without surrounding fluid or tendon cal-
raphy was used to monitor tracking of the fluid ment” of symptoms as those who reported dura- cifications. MRI findings were normal for
along the peritendinous tissues in both the sagittal tion of symptomatic improvement longer than 1 eight (22.9%) of 35 patients. On both ultra-
and transverse directions. Repositioning was per- month and patients with “insignificant improve- sound (20%) and MRI (62.9%), peritendini-
formed if fluid was not tracking over a length of ment” as those who reported having less than 1 tis, manifesting as fluid or edema adjacent to
tendon at least 5 cm long, to spread the medica- month of symptomatic resolution. We then used a the proximal hamstring origin, was the most
tion. After injection and needle removal, the per- Fisher’s exact test to determine whether length of common abnormal imaging finding. This is
itendinous soft tissues were massaged gently for symptoms before injection, presence of tendinop- illustrated in Figure 1. Findings consistent
1–2 minutes to further spread the medication in athy on MRI or ultrasound, presence of peritendi- with tendinopathy were shown by ultrasound
the tissue planes. With direct ultrasound visual- nitis on MRI or ultrasound or absence of imaging in 16.9% and by MRI in 25.7% of patients, as
ization of the needle, we avoided intratendinous
injection. Note also that, to avoid intratendinous
injection, we did not attempt to inject deeper at the
tendon–bone interface. On completion of the pro-
cedure, patients were asked to assess pain relief in
the immediate postinjection period.

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).

994 AJR:195, October 2010


Imaging of High Hamstring Tendinopathy

pain relief after injection, 11 patients who re-


sponded had complete resolution of symp-
toms, eight had moderate resolution, and 10
had mild resolution. Nine patients experi-
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enced no pain relief either immediately or lat-


er after the injection. The duration of symp-
tom resolution was longer than 6 months for
nine (23.7%) of the 38 patients, 1–6 months
for 10 patients (26.3%), 1 week to 1 month
for 9 patients (23.7%), and less than 1 week
for one patient (2.6%). The same nine pa-
tients who did not experience any pain relief
immediately after the injection also felt no
later benefit of the injection.
Fig. 2—55-year-old woman with proximal hamstring tendinopathy. In addition to assessment of symptomatic
A, Axial T2-weighted fat-suppressed image reveals increased T2 signal within tendon origin (arrowhead), relief from corticosteroid injection, we sur-
consistent with tendinopathy. veyed study patients regarding other treat-
B, Corresponding ultrasound image shows hypoechogenicity and heterogeneity (arrows) of hamstring tendon
(t) at its origin at ischial tuberosity (it). ment techniques. We found that that 26
(68.4%) of 38 patients had taken oral non-
steroidal antiinflammatory medications be-
shown in Figure 2. Ultrasound is incapable was capable of depicting echogenic intraten- fore the ultrasound-guided peritendinous in-
of detecting bone marrow edema, and no dis- dinous foci consistent with calcifications in jection. The remaining 12 patients (31.6%)
crete partial tears were evident on ultrasound 4.6% of patients. took no prior medication, whereas one had a
on retrospective image review. MRI showed The technique of percutaneous injection previous steroid injection without ultrasound
bone marrow edema and small (< 5 mm) foci is described in Materials and Methods. Fig- guidance. The majority of patients (30/38
of near fluid signal, suggesting partial tear- ure 5 shows a frame from the real-time ultra- [79%]) had undergone physical therapy be-
ing at the proximal hamstring tendon origin sound images during a typical injection. fore the injection.
in 20% of the studies (Fig. 3). As indicated In terms of the ultimate outcome, 27
above, patients with MR findings consistent Clinical Outcomes (71.0%) of 38 patients reported returning to
with discrete partial tears involving the ma- A total of 65 injections were performed, their presymptom level of activity after the
jority of the cross-section of one of the ham- with a mean time to follow-up of 4 years injection, and three of these individuals ac-
string components or greater were not be- (range, 6 months to 8 years). A total of 38 tually described a higher level of activity.
lieved appropriate for percutaneous steroid of the original 65 patients responded to our At the time of follow-up questioning, seven
injection. As shown in Figure 4, ultrasound survey (Table 2). In terms of the degree of of the patients (18.4%) had not been able to

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.

AJR:195, October 2010 995


Zissen et al.

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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thetic–corticosteroid injections into the ad-


<6m 8 (21) jacent bursa of the iliopsoas tendon that is
6 m to 1 y 15 (39.5) useful in diagnosing and treating exercise-
>1y 15 (39.5) related iliopsoas pathology. Although peri-
tendinous hamstring injections have been re-
Degree of symptom resolution
ported by other groups in limited numbers,
No resolution 9 (23.7) the efficacy of this technique has not been
Mild resolution 10 (26.3) evaluated. This work represents our institu-
Moderate resolution 8 (21) tion’s substantial experience with imaging
of the hamstring origin and sonographical-
Complete resolution 11 (28.9)
ly guided percutaneous treatments in the set-
Duration of symptom resolution ting of a clinical diagnosis of high hamstring
No resolution 9 (23.7) tendinopathy. Areas of proximal hamstring
< 1 wk 1 (2.6) tendinopathy were identified by locating the
thickened and hypoechoic areas of tendon on
1 wk to 1 m 9 (23.7)
sonography, allowing us to target our thera-
1–6 m 10 (26.3) py to this location under direct visualization.
>6m 9 (23.7) Ultrasound is a low-cost nonionizing readi-
ly available technique for the evaluation of
TABLE 3: Duration of Symptoms and Imaging Characteristics Associated tendons, muscles, cysts, and other fluid col-
With Significant Symptomatic Improvement lections. Ultrasound guidance for soft-tissue
Characteristic pa
injections has been found to be an excellent
tool for needle localization because of the
Duration of symptoms < 1 y 0.5 real-time imaging and excellent resolution of
Normal MRI finding 0.39 desired structures [13–16].
Normal ultrasound finding 0.02 In the setting of tendinopathy, it is hypoth-
Presence of tendinopathy on MRI or ultrasound 0.55
esized that the use of corticosteroids is ben-
eficial by limiting the chronic inflammation
Presence of peritendinitis on MRI or ultrasound 0.14 that may lead to tendon scarring and adhe-
aFisher’s exact test.
sion formation [17–19]. Although there is
concern that the introduction of corticoster-
return to the level of activity they enjoyed tion [7, 8]. This injury is distinct from the oids to a site of injury could limit healing and
before the onset of symptoms. None of the more common type of acute muscle strain subsequently weaken the underlying tendon,
contacted patients experienced significant that is typically limited to the myotendi- leading to future degeneration and rupture,
complications due to the injection. nous junction of the biceps femoris muscle there is no reliable documentation of the del-
To assess for imaging features that might and is routinely managed clinically with the eterious effects of peritendinous injections
be predictive of a positive response to steroid protocol of rest, ice, compression, and eleva- [7, 20]. It has also been suggested by multi-
injections, we tested for associations between tion as the preferred first-line approach [1, ple groups that the major benefit of perform-
each of the imaging features in Table 2 and 4]. For proximal hamstring tendinopathy, ing these injections with ultrasound guidance
the clinical outcome we defined as significant treatments such as antiinflammatory medi- is the accurate placement of the injection into
improvement. The duration of symptoms be- cations for pain control as well as rehabili- the tendon sheath, avoiding the tendon itself
fore injection, the absence of MRI findings, tation programs involving soft-tissue mobi- and thereby minimizing adverse events [11,
and the presence of tendinopathy or periten- lization, frequent stretching, and progressive 16]. The immediate improvement of symp-
dinitis on either technique were not statisti- strengthening can help the hamstring mus- toms resulting from the injected anesthet-
cally predictive of response to therapy (Table cles regain flexibility and are frequently used ic also serves as a clinical indicator that the
3). There was, however, a statistically signifi- in attempts to prevent further injury or rein- medication was delivered accurately and that
cant association between the absence of find- jury [2, 5]. For the majority of conservative- the hamstring tendon was indeed the cause
ings on ultrasound and a significant clinical ly managed patients, the time to full recov- of the patient’s discomfort.
response to therapy with a p value of 0.02. ery is typically 2–6 months. However, in up The goals of imaging in the setting of ham-
to 20% of patients, symptoms can persist for string pain are threefold—to confirm injury,
Discussion more than 6 months and become recalcitrant to provide a comprehensive assessment of the
Proximal hamstring tendinopathy is in- to conservative treatment [9, 10]. With more extent of the injury, and to identify which pa-
creasingly being recognized as an important frequent use of ultrasound and MRI in these tients may benefit from intervention. In our
cause for chronic pain in the active popula- patients, we are increasingly able to diagnose study, both MRI and ultrasound were found

996 AJR:195, October 2010


Imaging of High Hamstring Tendinopathy

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

AJR:195, October 2010 997


Zissen et al.

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,
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