Extracorporeal shock wave treatment in foot and ankle fracture non-unions — A review
Iris H.Y. Kwok, Edmund Ieong, Mosaab A. Aljalahma, Anil Haldar, Matthew Welck
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The authors reviewed the current evidence and conducted a comprehensive review on the use of extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT) in the treatment of foot and ankle fracture non-unions. METHODS: Four databases were searched to identify relevant studies in the available literature. RESULTS: Eight studies were reviewed, demonstrating union rates of 65%-100% and 90-100% at 3- and 6-months following ESWT treatment respectively. No major complications were seen in any of the studies. Minor complications included local soft tissue swelling, petechiae, bruising and pain. CONCLUSIONS: The literature that is currently available is limited to case series of relatively small sample sizes, highlighting the need for a prospective randomised controlled trial to further investigate the efficacy of ESWT in the treatment of foot and ankle fracture non-unions.