ULTRAsound assessment of the Achilles Tendon in Psoriatic Arthritis
Research type
Research Study
Full title
ULTRAsound assessment of Achilles Tendon controlled loading in Psoriatic Arthritis (ULTRA-PsA)
IRAS ID
351056
Contact name
Diane Dickson
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Glasgow Caledonian University
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 11 months, 31 days
Research summary
Psoriatic Arthritis (PsA) is a type of arthritis which can cause pain at the back of the heel. This can be caused by 1) enthesitis, a swelling of the attachments of tendon to bone, 2) tendinopathy, a swelling of the tendon, or 3) both. Without ultrasound imaging, it is almost impossible to distinguish between the two conditions by clinical examination alone.
This pain at the heel can make it difficult to walk or carry out daily activities. Treatment for this includes arthritis medication and physiotherapy. However, the physiotherapy exercises used to treat this type of heel pain were not developed specifically with people who have PsA in mind. These exercises were originally developed for tendinopathy in people who do not have PsA, in order to improve tendon health, reduce pain, and improve ability to carry out daily activities such as walking.
We want to understand what effect these routinely administered exercises have at the heel in people with PsA in the short term. We will do this by using ultrasound imaging (a safe and painless scan) to look at the heel structures before and after controlled physical testing of the Achilles tendon. We will compare people with and without PsA to look for differences after these tests using the scan and some brief questionnaires.
This study will help us understand whether these exercise programmes are a sensible approach to treat people with PsA who experience pain at the back of their heel. It will help us understand the short-term effect of physiotherapy exercises and may help the way physiotherapy is used to treat this type of heel pain in PsA in the future.
REC name
Yorkshire & The Humber - Sheffield Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
24/YH/0282
Date of REC Opinion
24 Jan 2025
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion