Efficacy and safety study of diclofenac epolamine topical patch in accelerating rehabilitation of moderate hamstring strain: A randomized controlled trial .

In 30 seconds

This single-centre, double-blind, placebo-controlled randomised trial evaluated topical diclofenac epolamine alongside rehabilitation in 120 patients with moderate hamstring strain. Participants received diclofenac or placebo patches twice daily for 14 days, with identical rehabilitation. Compared with placebo, diclofenac was associated with greater pain reduction at days 14, 21 and 28, better measures of strength, knee range of motion and back-kick function at specified follow-up points, and a shorter time to meet rehabilitation criteria (p = 0.002). Adverse events and liver and renal function changes were similar between groups.

Key findings

• Pain reduction was greater with diclofenac at days 14, 21 and 28 (all p < 0.01).
• Strength recovery was superior at days 21 and 28; knee range of motion and back-kick performance were better at day 28 (all p < 0.05).
• Time to meet rehabilitation criteria was shorter with diclofenac (p = 0.002).
• Adverse event incidence and liver and renal function changes were similar between groups (all p > 0.05).

Why it matters

Hamstring strain can limit daily and athletic function, and rehabilitation progress depends on pain and functional recovery. This trial suggests that adding a short course of topical diclofenac to rehabilitation may improve several measured recovery outcomes without a detected difference in adverse events or liver and renal function changes. The findings provide comparative evidence for this approach in moderate hamstring strain.

What to keep in mind

The trial was single-centre, and the abstract does not report effect sizes or confidence intervals for the outcomes.