Telethermographic evaluation of NSAIDs in the treatment of sport sinjuries

Abstract

In a multicenter double-blind clinical trial, forty-five athletes, 39 males and 6 females, mean age 20.87 yr (SD 4.48), affected by sports injuries were treated with diclofenac, suprofen, or placebo, orally administered for a period of 1 wk. An objective examination like telethermography was performed with the clinical evaluations (pain on movement or at pressure, motility, and swelling) before and after the treatment period, in all patients. Moreover, at the end of the trial both investigator and patient gave their global judgement of efficacy. The statistical analysis showed a significant superiority of diclofenac sodium versus suprofen and placebo both in patients' and in investigators' global evaluations (P less than 0.05--Kruskal-Wallis tests). This superiority appeared particularly clear in the telethermographic evaluation (P less than 0.05), which is more objective than the clinical one, attesting to the usefulness of the early administration of anti-inflammatory drugs in management of sports injuries. Furthermore, a correlation analysis showed that telethermography is a good technique in controlling the recovery process.