Maximum precision in the treatment of the injured tissue or structure, immediate pain relief and accuracy in the diagnosis are the advantages of ultrasound-guided infiltration, a technique that allows drugs to be administered to the injured tissue or structure of the patient with great precision. To do this, the damaged tissue is previously evaluated by means of ultrasound, to guide a needle into it and treat it.
Ultrasound-guided infiltrations are performed at Hospiten Rambla University Hospital, explains specialist in Traumatology and Orthopedic Surgery, Dr. Carlos de Jose Reina.
Advantages of ultrasound-guided infiltrations
"The main advantage is the immediacy of the procedure during the consultation", assures the specialist, since the diagnosis and treatment of the problem is done in a single consultation. This is because ultrasound is used as a diagnostic and therapeutic tool, "which means the patient will recover very rapidly”.
Another advantage is the remarkable reduction of pain in patients. “In the past, when we performed blind infiltrations based on anatomical landmarks around a joint, we were not able to specify where the medication had to be placed with such finesse,” explains Dr. Jose Reina. By using this technique, we can achieve the same results in a single infiltration that were previously achieved in four applications. "Patients leave the consultation much more satisfied because it does not hurt," he clarifies.
Who is the technique indicated for?
This type of technique is indicated for all those sports conditions that suppose straining the tendon or joint and entail increased inflammatory activity.
Dr. Jose Reina states that there are two peaks of incidence in patients who require ultrasound-guided infiltrations - very young athletes, generally of high level or who do sport very frequently, and the population with degenerative pathologies like osteoarthritis and ruptured tendons.
Dr. Carlos de José Reina, Orthopedic Surgery and Trauma