Osteopathic Research Web

Efficacy of corticosteroid injections for greater trochanteric pain syndrome: a structured literature review

Item

Title

Efficacy of corticosteroid injections for greater trochanteric pain syndrome: a structured literature review

Author(s)

Kellser, S

Abstract

Background Greater trochanteric pain syndrome (GTPS) is characterised by lateral hip pain over the greater trochanter, most likely affecting the tendons of gluteus medius and minimus. Despite limited evidence about the efficacy of corticosteroid injections (CSI) for GTPS, the current NICE guidelines as well as many physiotherapists recommend them as a treatment modality for GTPS. Objective To systematically review the literature from the last 10 years to evaluate the efficacy of CSI in the short- and long-term for GTPS. Design Structured literature review. Methods Search returns of four databases were filtered for inclusion criteria, full texts were obtained, and study characteristics were extracted into tables for further comparison. Conclusions about the efficacy of CSI were established by analysing group differences in pain levels and interpreting effect sizes. The results were then critically appraised within the context of the study characteristics and the methodological quality of the trials using the modified Jadad scale and journal impact factors (JIF’s). Results Nine randomised controlled trials (RCT’s) were included in this review, which studied a total of 835 participants with a mean age of 55 years and a significant female predominance. Overall, CSI was mainly found to be equally effective as a diverse range of other interventions with weak trends towards superiority in the short-term and inferiority in the long-term accompanied by large effect sizes. The studies had overall moderately standardised study characteristics like the diagnostic processes and a moderate to high methodological quality but were published within journals of low JIF’s. Discussion The results of this review challenge the conclusions of a current systematic review about GTPS which suggest strong evidence for short-term efficacy of CSI for GTPS. The findings are mainly applicable to middle-aged women and may not be transferred to other groups that are affected by GTPS. Moreover, the evaluation of trials was only based on pain as an outcome measurement and therefore conclusions about functional outcomes could not be made. Conclusion CSI are mostly equally effective in reducing pain levels as a range of other interventions in the short- and long-term. Although weak trends have been reported, clinicians should be cautious before recommending CSI to a patient with GTPS for quick pain relief, because of the limited number of trials that support this efficacy.

presented at

European School of Osteopathy

Date Accepted

2020

Date Submitted

28.10.2020 18:08:19

Type

osteo_thesis

Language

English

Submitted by:

62

Pub-Identifier

16669

Inst-Identifier

1229

Keywords

Corticosteroid injections (CSI), Efficacy, Effect size, Greater trochanteric pain syndrome (GTPS), Tendinopathy

Recommended

0

Item sets

Thesis

Kellser, S, “Efficacy of corticosteroid injections for greater trochanteric pain syndrome: a structured literature review”, Osteopathic Research Web, accessed May 1, 2025, https://www.osteopathic-research.com/s/orw/item/186