Therapeutic Efficacy of Intratendinous Delivery of Dexamethasone Using Porous Microspheres for Amelioration of Inflammation and Tendon Degeneration on Achilles Tendinitis in Rats

Achilles tendinitis caused by overuse, aging, or gradual wear induces pain, swelling, and stiffness of Achilles tendon and leads to tendon rupture. This study was performed to investigate the suppression of inflammation responses in interleukin-1β- (IL-1β-) stimulated tenocytes in vitro and the suppression of the progression of Achilles tendinitis-induced rat models in vivo using dexamethasone-containing porous microspheres (DEX/PMSs) for a sustained intratendinous DEX delivery. DEX from DEX/PMSs showed the sustained release of DEX. Treatment of IL-1β-stimulated tenocytes with DEX/PMSs suppressed the mRNA levels for COX-2, IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α. The intratendinous injection of DEX/PMSs into Achilles tendinitis rats both decreased the mRNA levels for these cytokines and increased mRNA levels for anti-inflammatory cytokines IL-4 and IL-10 in tendon tissues. Furthermore, DEX/PMSs effectively prevented tendon degeneration by enhancing the collagen content and biomechanical properties. Our findings suggest that DEX/PMSs show great potential as a sustained intratendinous delivery system for ameliorating inflammation responses as well as tendon degeneration in Achilles tendinitis.