J Korean Acad Rehabil Med.  2010 Apr;34(2):209-213.

Comparision of Blind Technique and Ultrasonography Guided Technique of Subacromial Subdeltoid Bursa Injection

• Cho KH
• Gee SJ
• Lee HJ
• Hwang SH

Abstract

OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the accuracy and effect of ultrasonography guided subacromial subdeltoid (SASD) bursa injection on the shoulder pain and function compared to blind technique. METHOD: Twenty-eight patients diagnosed as SASD bursitis were administered with SASD injection of corticosteroids randomly by either blind or US guided technique and then assessed by ultrasonography to confirm the accuracy. Shoulder pain and function were evaluated by visual analog scale with Hawkin's impingement test, active range of motion (ROM) of the shoulder, University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA) shoulder rating scale before and 1 week after the injection.
RESULTS
The accuracy of SASD injection using blind technique was 42.8%, however, US-guided injection showed 100% accuracy, significantly higher than blind technique (p<0.05). We could find significant improvement in pain with Hawkin's impingement test, active ROM of the shoulder, UCLA shoulder rating scale 1 week after injection in both groups. But there were no significant differences between the groups. In eight patients, failure was observed: four in the suprascapularis tendon, three in the deltoid muscle, and one in the subcutaneous tissue without side effects.
CONCLUSION
Ultasonography guided injection into SASD bursa improved the accuracy of injection. However the injection method and the success of injection did not affect to the pain and shoulder function.

Keyword

Ultrasonography; Subacromial subdeltoid injection; Shoulder

MeSH Terms

Adrenal Cortex Hormones
Bursitis
Deltoid Muscle
Humans
Range of Motion, Articular
Shoulder
Shoulder Pain
Subcutaneous Tissue
Tendons
Adrenal Cortex Hormones