Trial reportBMJ open2017
Randomised controlled trial evaluating the short-term analgesic effect of topical diclofenac on chronic Achilles tendon pain: a pilot study.
Trial report in BMJ open, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
10 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 19 citations in OpenAlex.
- Pooled it
- ICON 2020-International Scientific Tendinopathy Symposium Consensus: A Systematic Review of Outcome Measures Reported in Clinical Trials of Achilles Tendinopathy.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2022Pooled it
- Topical diclofenac vs placebo for the treatment of chronic Achilles tendinopathy: A randomized controlled clinical trial.PloS one · 2021Trial
- Trial
- Comparison of diclofenac gel, ibuprofen gel, and ibuprofen gel with levomenthol for the topical treatment of pain associated with musculoskeletal injuries.The Journal of international medical research · 2019Trial
- Achilles Tendon Scraping With Plantaris Tendon Removal for Achilles Tendinopathy: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.Foot & ankle orthopaedics · 2025Review
- Multidisciplinary Guidelines for the Rational Use of Topical Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs for Musculoskeletal Pain (2022).Journal of clinical medicine · 2023Review
- Pain and Function in the Runner a Ten (din) uous Link.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2020Article
- 15-Epi-LXAFASEB journal : official publication of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology · 2019Article
- Using Pressure Massage for Achilles Tendinopathy: A Single-Blind, Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing a Novel Treatment Versus an Eccentric Exercise Protocol.Orthopaedic journal of sports medicine · 2019Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesTo determine if a topically applied non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (diclofenac) can provide short-term pain relief for chronic Achilles tendinopathy (CAT), in order to inform the development of a new rehabilitation protocol. DESIGN AND
settingPilot double-blind, cross-over randomised controlled trial providing participants with tertiary care. The study was conducted at a single research centre in Vancouver, BC.
participantsSixteen adults with unilateral CAT and three adults with bilateral CAT participated.
interventionsParticipants received two successive treatments (10% diclofenac gel or placebo gel) in random order over a 3-day period. There was a 1-week washout period between the treatments. Allocation was by simple randomisation, and the participants as well as the assessing/treating researcher were blinded to treatment allocation. OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome measure was pain level (0-10) during tendon loading (hopping). Secondary outcome measures included pain at rest, pressure pain threshold of the Achilles tendon and symptom improvement.
resultsNineteen adults participated in the study, and all were included in the analysis. Diclofenac gel significantly reduced the average pain during tendon loading (p<0.001) and at rest (p=0.031). The average baseline hopping pain was 4.8/10 (95% CI 3.92 to 5.68) and was reduced to 3.1/10 (2.35-3.85) by diclofenac. Pain at rest was decreased and pressure pain threshold increased with diclofenac treatment, but not with placebo gel. There were no observed or reported side effects of either treatment.
conclusionsIn this small, short-term study, diclofenac was able to improve symptoms and reduce pain during tendon loading in participants with CAT, whereas placebo gel was not. A future study of diclofenac as a supplement to rehabilitation, with longer follow-up and powered to detect a difference between diclofenac and placebo, is indicated.
trial registrationISRCTN60151284, http://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN60151284 ETHICS: UBC Clinical Research Ethics Board approval was obtained for this research. The certificate number of the ethics certificate of approval to conduct research is H15-00999.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.