Evidence-Based Use of Injections and Alternative Therapies Online CE Course

This package includes the following:

• 20 online articles from Sports Medicine Research
• Online continuing education exam

News reports have raised the public’s awareness about the therapeutic benefits and risks of injections, such as platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and corticosteroid injections. Injections, however, are not a cure-all; while a PRP injection may be beneficial in the treatment of tennis elbow, it often fails for people with Achilles tendinopathies.

Evidence-Based Use of Injections and Alternative Therapies Online CE Course provides a comprehensive review of research on alternative therapies and injectable medicine to help clinicians recognize when injections can be optimally used to reduce the risk of unnecessary adverse reactions. You’ll find 20 research articles regarding benefits and risks of different types of injections—specifically platelet-rich plasma, corticosteroids, and hyaluronan—for treatment of various musculoskeletal injuries and conditions, demonstrating how athletic trainers and therapists can use existing studies and apply the information to their own practice. Each reading summarizes the research, offers a clinical appraisal, and indicates the clinical relevance of the study.

Evidence-Based Use of Injections and Alternative Therapies Online CE Course supports the initiative in the athletic training profession to integrate the best new research and evidence into clinical decision making, with the goal of improving patient outcomes.

Once you complete the readings and pass the 100-question exam, you can print a certificate for continuing education credits.

Learning Objectives

• Identify patient populations that may be responsive to platelet-rich plasma injections.
• Identify patient populations that may be responsive to corticosteroid injections.
• Identify patient populations that may be responsive to hyaluronan injections.
• Explain to patients the benefits and risks of different types of injections for musculoskeletal conditions.

Audience

Certified athletic trainers and athletic therapists.

Article 1: Platelet-Rich Plasma Injections Do Not Improve Achilles Tendon Healing
Article 2: PRP Injections Are Not Effective for Chronic Achilles Tendinopathy
Article 3: Not So Fast With That PRP: Platelet-Rich Plasma for Hamstring Injuries
Article 4: Platelet-Rich Plasma: Is It Beneficial in Shoulder Surgery?
Article 5: PRP Injections for Chronic Rotator Cuff Tendinopathy
Article 6: What Is the Best Treatment Option for Calcific Tendinitis of the Rotator Cuff?
Article 7: What Is the Optimal Dose of Corticosteroids for Adhesive Capsulitis?
Article 8: PRP and Lateral Epicondylitis: The (Re)Search Continues
Article 9: The Questionable Long-Term Effectiveness of Physiotherapy and Corticosteroid Injections for Tennis Elbow
Article 10: PRP Outperforms Corticosteroid Injections for Lateral Epicondylitis
Article 11: Comparing PRP, Glucocorticoid, and Saline Injections for Lateral Epicondylitis
Article 12: PRP for Tendon and Ligament Injuries: Does It Work?
Article 13: A Review of the Efficacy and Safety of Corticosteroid and Other Injections
Article 14: The Benefits of Platelet-Rich Plasma on Fracture Healing
Article 15: PRP or Hyaluronate in the Management of Talar Osteochondral Lesions
Article 16: Do Hyaluronan Injections Improve Outcomes After Microfracture Procedures in the Ankle?
Article 17: Debating Early Viscosupplementation
Article 18: Hyaluronic Acid Versus PRP for Knee Osteoarthritis
Article 19: Not All PRP Preparations Are the Same: A Call for More Systematic Research
Article 20: PRP Preparations: Are You Getting What You Wanted?

Jeffrey B. Driban, PhD, ATC, is an assistant professor in the division of rheumatology at Tufts University School of Medicine and a member of the special and scientific staff at Tufts Medical Center. The goal of his research is to explore novel biochemical and imaging markers to gain a better understanding of osteoarthritis pathophysiology and potential disease phenotypes.

Driban received his bachelor’s degree in athletic training from the University of Delaware. During his doctoral training at Temple University, he focused on various aspects of osteoarthritis (e.g., early pathophysiology in animal models, biochemical markers in joint fluid, systematic reviews of risk factors for osteoarthritis, survey of medication use among patients with osteoarthritis). In January 2010, he began a postdoctoral research fellowship in the division of rheumatology at Tufts Medical Center, where he continued his focus on osteoarthritis and learned new assessment strategies in magnetic resonance imaging.

Stephen Thomas, PhD, ATC, is an assistant professor at Temple University. Thomas received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in athletic training from Temple University. He then received his PhD in biomechanics and movement science from the University of Delaware. Before working at Neumann University, Thomas performed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania in the department of orthopedic surgery and biomedical engineering, where he received a Ruth L. Kirschstein Research Grant from the National Institutes of Health. He has served on several national committees and is the chair of the research committee for the American Society of Shoulder and Elbow Therapists.

Thomas continues to be active in the area of research, participating as a manuscript reviewer for several peer-reviewed journals. He is on the executive board for Athletic Training and Sports Health Care. He also was an ad hoc grant reviewer for the EATA and is the cofounder of a website dedicated to the summary of sports medicine research called Sports Medicine Research (Sports Medicine Research, www.sportsmedres.org). Thomas has numerous peer-reviewed publications and abstracts on shoulder adaptations due to overhead throwing and on the basic science of rotator cuff injury and healing. He has also had several invited lectures throughout the United States in the area of overhead throwing.