Modulation of anti-inflammatory factors in a model of traumatic injury in rat Achilles tendon

Abstract

Tendinitis is a common disorder of the musculoskeletal system and has various clinical manifestations. Although most tendons have the ability to spontaneously repair after injury, scar tissue formed may impair the normal tendon functioning. Studies have been conducted using phototherapy in different areas of health, using both lasers and LEDs of low intensity. However, there is a small number of studies concerning on the use LEDs for the treatment of musculo-skeletal diseases. The main purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of LED phototherapy in the process of tendon repair after experimental induction of rat Achilles tendonitis. The experimental model of rat Tendinitis consists of a trauma induced to the Achilles tendon of the animals, using an special apparatus. Approximately 112 male Wistar rats will be used(240 ± 20g), The animals will be divided into 14 groups and two different experimental periods (7 and 14 days).. The LED phototherapy will be applied transcutaneously on the injured area. The control animals will be submitted to the simulation of the application with the power turned off. The euthanasia will occur at 7 and 14 days after the induction of tendinitis. Microscopical analysis will be performed in order to evaluate inflammatory cells migration andcollagencontents and organization. Besides, vascular permeability and the inflammatory mediators gene expression will be verified quantified by RT-PCR.