Inflammatory Arthropathy in the Elite Sports Athlete.

Elite athletes commonly present with joint pains that are attributed to overuse injuries though on occasion it can be due to an inflammatory arthropathy. The diagnostic challenge is that presenting symptoms of benign injuries are similar to inflammatory arthropathies. A holistic review of the athlete can provide clues suggestive of inflammatory arthropathy, before requesting further investigations to confirm the diagnosis.

Growth factor-based therapies provide additional benefit beyond physical therapy in resistant elbow tendinopathy: a prospective, single-blind, randomised trial of autologous blood injections versus platelet-rich plasma injections.

Background: Growth factor technologies are increasingly used to enhance healing in musculoskeletal injuries, particularly in sports medicine. Two such products; platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and autologous blood, have a growing body of supporting evidence. No previous trial has directly compared the efficacy of these two methods.