Research summary · Recovery and rehabilitation
Shockwave therapy and immediate Achilles tendon pain
A randomized trial tests whether radial shockwave therapy provides immediate pain relief beyond a sham procedure for persistent insertional Achilles tendinopathy.
- Publication year
- 2026
- First published online
- Publication type
- Sham-controlled randomized trial
- Journal
- Clinical Rehabilitation
- Population / context
- Tendon rehabilitation · Adults with insertional Achilles tendinopathy
What the publication reports
Seventy-six adults, mean age 51 and 53% female, received three shockwave or sham sessions alongside identical education and exercise. Movement-evoked pain showed no clear between-group difference after any session. The article appeared online in November 2025 and in the February 2026 journal issue.
Limits and interpretation
These findings concern immediate responses in a clinic population, not elite athletes or long-term return to sport. They should not be extrapolated to every shockwave protocol or other tendon conditions. The equipment supplier funded the trial.
Read the source
Consult the original record for the full author list, methods, references, funding and competing-interest disclosures.
Does radial shockwave therapy lead to immediate improvements in pain in people with insertional Achilles tendinopathy? A randomised controlled trial
Original publication / indexed recordPMID: 41308020DOI: 10.1177/02692155251394951Full text at the sourceReader discussion
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