Efficacy of ultrasound-guided galvanic electrolysis technique and physical therapy in patients with Achilles' tendinopathy: A pilot randomised controlled trial.

Achilles tendinopathy that persists beyond three months can be stubborn, and eccentric exercise, the usual mainstay, does not always resolve symptoms quickly. This pilot trial asked whether adding an ultrasound-guided galvanic electrolysis technique, a minimally invasive procedure delivering targeted electrical current to the tendon, to standard eccentric exercise therapy could improve outcomes compared with exercise therapy alone. Fifty adults with chronic non-insertional Achilles tendinopathy completed eight weeks of physiotherapy, with half also receiving three electrolysis sessions. Right after treatment, the two groups looked similar, but at one and two month follow-up, the group receiving the added procedure showed statistically significant greater improvement in tendon-related symptoms and pain scores.

Both groups improved over time, but the combined approach pulled further ahead in the medium term. As a pilot study with modest numbers, these findings should be read as preliminary and exploratory rather than definitive proof of added benefit.

If you've dealt with a stubborn Achilles tendon problem that hasn't fully resolved with typical exercises, this study looked at whether adding a specific type of guided electrical treatment to your usual exercise-based physical therapy might help more than exercise alone. Fifty people with long-standing Achilles tendon pain took part, half doing exercise therapy alone and half also getting the additional treatment, which involves a fine needle guided by ultrasound to deliver a small electrical current into the tendon. Right at the end of the eight-week program, both groups were doing about the same.

But when researchers checked back one and two months later, the group that also received the extra treatment reported statistically better improvements in tendon function and pain than the exercise-only group. This is encouraging for people frustrated with slow-healing tendon pain, but the study was small and described by its own researchers as a pilot, meaning it's an early look rather than a settled answer. No harmful side effects were reported in either group, though larger studies would help confirm these results.

This is a summary of research, not medical advice. Talk to your own healthcare provider about anything affecting your care.

This pilot randomised controlled trial enrolled 52 adults aged 25 to 60 with unilateral chronic non-insertional Achilles tendinopathy, with 50 completing the protocol. Both arms received identical eccentric-exercise physiotherapy twice weekly for 8 weeks; the experimental group additionally received three ultrasound-guided galvanic electrolysis technique (USGET) sessions at 15-day intervals.

Outcomes were VISA-A and VAS pain, assessed at baseline, end of treatment, and one- and two-month follow-up. No between-group difference was detected immediately post-treatment (p>0.337). At one-month follow-up, the USGET group showed statistically significant advantages in VISA-A and VAS (p=0.010 and p=0.002 respectively).

At two months, both groups improved from baseline, but between-group differences favoured USGET for VISA-A total score (p<0.001) and its Pain, Function, and Sport subscales (p=0.004, 0.003, 0.002). No adverse events were reported in either arm. As a pilot study, this trial is appropriately framed as hypothesis-generating; the modest sample size, single-centre design, and lack of reported blinding details limit confidence in effect magnitude and generalisability.

The delayed emergence of between-group differences, absent immediately post-treatment but present at follow-up, warrants replication in adequately powered trials before informing practice.