Normal saline injection produces a therapeutic effect in patients with plantar fasciitis: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Víctor Manuel Peña-Martínez, Carlos Acosta-Olivo, Yadira Tamez-Mata, Luis E Simental-Mendía, Jaime Blázquez-Saldaña, Félix Vilchez-Cavazos, Mario Simental-Mendía

Foot and ankle surgery : official journal of the European Society of Foot and Ankle Surgeons 2022 Dec

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Injectable therapies have been increasingly investigated to treat plantar fasciitis in randomized controlled trials (RCT) where normal saline injections are frequently used as placebo. The purpose was to quantify the effect of saline injections and compared against available minimal clinically important difference (MCID) criteria specific for plantar fasciitis to assess if changes were clinically meaningful. RCT including a placebo group (normal saline) and reporting changes in pain and functional outcomes in plantar fasciitis were identified through a search in MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science, and Scopus to February 2022. PRISMA guidelines and a registered protocol (PROSPERO: CRD42020214035) were followed to conduct the study. Pooled analysis of 13 RCT (379 subjects) included for analysis revealed a significant improvement on pain (P < .00001) and functional scores (P < .00001) after normal saline injections. These changes exceeded the established MCID criteria. Normal saline injections in plantar fasciitis showed a therapeutic effect with statistically and clinically meaningful improvement when administered in the setting of an RCT for up to 12 months. The control of potential confounders influencing the effect of saline injections is required for future research. Copyright © 2022 European Foot and Ankle Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Citation

Víctor Manuel Peña-Martínez, Carlos Acosta-Olivo, Yadira Tamez-Mata, Luis E Simental-Mendía, Jaime Blázquez-Saldaña, Félix Vilchez-Cavazos, Mario Simental-Mendía. Normal saline injection produces a therapeutic effect in patients with plantar fasciitis: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Foot and ankle surgery : official journal of the European Society of Foot and Ankle Surgeons. 2022 Dec;28(8):1129-1138