A randomized-control study of active and passive treatments for chronic low back pain following L5 laminectomy.
The professional literature contains relatively few randomized-control studies that have assessed the efficacy of physical therapy approaches to the management of patients with chronic low back pain (CLBP). The purposes of this study were: 1) to investigate the effects of physical agents, joint manipulation, low-tech exercise, and high-tech exercise on objective measures of CLBP; 2) to track the length of CLBP relief; and 3) to determine treatment cost-effectiveness. Two-hundred-fifty subjects (68 females, 182 males; ages 34-51 years) with CLBP following an L5 laminectomy were randomly assigned into five separate groups for a treatment period of 8 weeks. Chronic low back pain status was measured by modified-modified Schober, Cybex Liftask, and Oswestry procedures. Results revealed that: 1) only low-tech and high-tech exercise produced significant improvements (p < .05) in CLBP, 2) the mean period of CLBP relief ranged from 1.6 weeks (control) to 91.4 weeks (low-tech exercise), and 3) low-tech exercise was most cost-effective. It was concluded that: 1) low-tech and high-tech exercise were the only effective treatments for CLBP, 2) low-tech exercise produced the longest period of CLBP relief, and 3) low-tech exercise was the most cost-effective form of treatment. Clinically, low-tech exercise may be the treatment method of choice for the effective management of chronic low back pain.
St. Luke's Healthcare Association, St. Luke's Orthopaedic Services Facility, Saginaw, MI 48602.
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Timm
D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis; D005081:Exercise Therapy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007796:Laminectomy; D017116:Low Back Pain / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D008159:Lumbar Vertebrae / Q000601:surgery; D008297:Male; D008349:Manipulation, Orthopedic; D008875:Middle Aged; D026741:Physical Therapy Modalities / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods*; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D004561:Transcutaneous Electric Nerve Stimulation; D014464:Ultrasonic Therapy