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Innovative Therapies for Achilles Tendon Injuries
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Innovative Therapies for Achilles Tendon Injuries

A special issue of Journal of Functional Morphology and Kinesiology (ISSN 2411-5142). This special issue belongs to the section "Functional Anatomy and Musculoskeletal System".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 May 2026 | Viewed by 726

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Gundula Schulze-Tanzil

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Guest Editor
Institute of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Paracelsus Medical University, Nuremberg and Salzburg, 90419 Nuremberg, Germany
Interests: ligament/tendon; cartilage; tissue engineering and reconstruction; osteoarthritis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Clemens Gögele

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Paracelsus Medical University, 90419 Nuremberg, Germany
Interests: ligament/tendon; cartilage; tissue engineering and reconstruction
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The rupture of the Achilles tendon (AS), the strongest tendon in the human body, can end the career of athletes. AS healing is time-consuming and can lead to biomechanically inferior scar tissue and tendinopathy. Background conditions such as diabetes mellitus type 2, hormonal disbalances, treatment with local anesthetics, fluoroquinolones, etc., increase the risk of rupture and result in an inferior healing response. This Special Issue seeks the submission of novel therapeutical approaches that focus on AS cell therapy, orthobiologics, nutrients/supplements, biological implants, tailored biomechanical stimulation, etc. However, since a healthy AS does not usually tear under normal loading, the understanding of the interplay of the factors contributing to the pathogenesis of AS rupture and the insufficient healing of that tendon could also be addressed.

Prof. Dr. Gundula Schulze-Tanzil
Dr. Clemens Gögele
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Journal of Functional Morphology and Kinesiology is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • achilles tendon
  • rupture
  • healing
  • tenocytes
  • tendon-derived stem cells
  • tendinopathy
  • cell therapy
  • orthobiologics
  • mechanostimulation

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

9 pages, 738 KB  
Article
Ultrasound- and Colour Doppler-Guided WALANT Surgery for Insertional Achilles Tendinopathy: A Prospective Case Series on 53 Consecutive Patients
by Philip Bazala, Markus Waldén, David Roberts, Christoph Spang and Håkan Alfredson
J. Funct. Morphol. Kinesiol. 2026, 11(1), 34; https://doi.org/10.3390/jfmk11010034 - 15 Jan 2026
Viewed by 424
Abstract
Background: Treatment of chronic painful insertional Achilles tendinopathy is known to be challenging. If non-surgical treatment does not give sufficient relief of symptoms, surgery may be indicated. Treatment with ultrasound (US)- and colour Doppler (CD)-guided wide-awake-local-anaesthetic-no-tourniquet (WALANT) surgery for insertional Achilles tendinopathy is [...] Read more.
Background: Treatment of chronic painful insertional Achilles tendinopathy is known to be challenging. If non-surgical treatment does not give sufficient relief of symptoms, surgery may be indicated. Treatment with ultrasound (US)- and colour Doppler (CD)-guided wide-awake-local-anaesthetic-no-tourniquet (WALANT) surgery for insertional Achilles tendinopathy is a new approach with promising clinical results. This study aimed to evaluate clinical results of this new approach on patients suffering from insertional Achilles tendinopathy. Methods: Forty-eight consecutive patients with 53 symptomatic tendons (33 men with 34 tendons, mean age 49.3 ± 12.0 years; 14 women with 18 tendons, mean age 55.0 ± 7.4 years) and a duration of more than 12 months with painful insertional Achilles tendinopathy (including tendon, bursae, bone, and plantaris pathology) were included. US- and CD-guided WALANT surgery with removal of pathological bursae, bone, and tendons was used. Immediate weight-bearing loading was allowed, followed by a structured rehabilitation protocol for the first 12 weeks after surgery. VISA-A scores before and after surgery and a questionnaire that evaluated subjective satisfaction with the treatment and current activity level were used. Results: In total, 42/48 patients with 46/53 tendons participated in a 3-year follow-up (mean 34 ± 9 months) by an independent examiner; 39/42 patients with 43/46 tendons were satisfied (n = 37) with the treatment. The mean VISA-A score increased significantly from 41.9 ± 18.2 pre-operatively to 87.7 ± 18.2 post-operatively (p < 0.001). There were three surgical complications, two superficial wound infections, and one minor wound rupture. Conclusions: Patients who suffered from chronic painful insertional Achilles tendinopathy treated with US- and CD-guided WALANT surgery followed by immediate weight-bearing showed high patient subjective satisfaction rates and better functional scores at the 3-year follow-up with a low complication rate. This novel treatment approach warrants more study, including randomised trials comparing it against traditional surgical procedures according to Nunley and Keck and Kelly. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovative Therapies for Achilles Tendon Injuries)
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