Abstract Information 
Abstract ID
20260011
Category
Foot & Ankle
Preferable Presentation
Oral Presentation
Title
THE PREVALENCE OF ACHILLES TENDINOPATHY IN ACUTE RUPTURES
Author
  • Full Name: SAMUEL LING
  • Affiliation/Institution: CUHK
  • Country: Hong Kong S.A.R.

  • Full Name: SIU-TING CHAN
  • Affiliation/Institution: CUHK
  • Country: Hong Kong S.A.R.
Presenter
Samuel Ling
Abstract
Background
There are two main clinical problems in the Achilles tendon: acute Achilles tendon ruptures and chronic Achilles tendinopathy. Achilles tendinopathy describes a spectrum of inflammation and degeneration often referred to as Achilles tendinitis and tendinosis. It affects people regardless of their lifestyle, with an incidence rate of 2.35 in 1000. Meanwhile, the incidence of Achilles tendon rupture in the general population is approximately 5-10 in 100,000. This study investigates the prevalence of Achilles Tendinopathy in patients with acute ruptures.

Methods
110 patients with an acute rupture of the Achilles tendon were reviewed. The presence and severity of Achilles tendinopathy were documented by ultrasonography. Binary logistic regression was used to determine the effect of certain risk factors on the severity of Achilles tendon rupture. Ordinal logistic regression was used to determine the effect of epidemiological risk factors on the severity of Achilles tendinopathy. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

Results
57% of patients with acute Achilles tendon ruptures had underlying Achilles tendinopathy. The effects of gender (p=0.224), age (p=0.258) and severity of Achilles tendinopathy (p=0.927) on the severity of Achilles tendon rupture were not statistically significant. For each one-year increase in age, the odds of severity of Achilles tendinopathy increasing by one level was 1.036 times (95%CI: 1.008-1.065, p=0.012). The effect of gender (p=0.424) on the severity of Achilles tendinopathy was not statistically significant.

Conclusion
More than half of the patients with acute Achilles tendon ruptures had underlying Achilles tendinopathy. Routine Achilles ultrasonography can be considered an adjunct to a physical examination to detect previously asymptomatic tendinopathy. Further research is recommended to investigate the impact of pre-existing tendinopathy on the clinical outcome in patients with acute Achilles tendon ruptures.