Background: Skeletal muscle injuries are one of the most common injuries in sport medicine. Many injection protocols have been proposed for the treatment as corticosteroid injection. Recently prolotherapy appears to have a safety profile comparable with other injection procedures.
Aim of the Work: Was to determine the efficacy of dextrose prolotherapy in treatment of skeletal muscle injury in adult male albino rats.
Material and Methods: Sixty three adult male albino rats were used in the study. They were divided into control (group I). Group II was divided into sham operated group (group IIA) and muscle injury group (group IIB) and group III was divided into lidocaine injected group (group IIIA ) and muscle injury treated with dextrose prolotherapy group (group IIIB). Muscle specimens were taken at 5,12 and 28 days and processed for light microscope
Results: Examination of Group IIB1 (5 days) showed intense infiltration of mononucleated inflammatory cells intermingling with dispersed myoblasts and macrophages. Group IIB2 (12 days) showed regenerating myotubes intermingling with mononuclear inflammatory infiltrate and macrophages. Group IIB3 (28 days) showed some muscle fibers with peripherally elongated nuclei while others showed centrally vesicular ones. Examination of group IIIB1 (5 day treated) showed longitudinal regenerating myofibers with multiple rows of internal vesiculated nuclei. Group IIIB2 (12 days treated) showed newly formed myofibers with incomplete striations together with well developed newly formed striated longitudinal muscle bundles with peripheral flattened nuclei ,group IIIB3 (28 days treated) showed cross striated muscle fibers with the appearance of elongated vesicular nuclei.
Conclusion: Dextrose prolotherapy was effective in soft tissue healing as it accelerated myoblast proliferation and differentiation.