S Ferry, L Dahners, H Afshari and P Weinhold
Tendon injuries that occur at osteotendinous junctions are commonly seen in clinical practice, they range from acute strain to rupture. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are often prescribed in the treatment of these conditions. However the effect of NSAIDs on healing at bone-tendon junctions is unclear. In a complex lab-based study the patella tendons of rats were damged and their healing response monitored. There were a number of intervention groups each having a different NSAID administered, and 1 control group. At 14 days the rats were sacrificed and their patella tendon strength was assessed by loading to failure. The results showed that the NSAIDs with the exception of Ibuprofen had detrimental effects on healing at bone-tendon junctions. The biomechanical properties paralleled closely with with the total collagen content at the injury site, suggesting that these NSAIDs may alter healing strength by decreasig collagen content.
The American Journal of Sports Medicine, 2007, 35, 1326-1333