title: Lumbar kinematic variability during gait in chronic low back pain and associations with pain, disability and isolated lumbar extension strength.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Chronic low back pain is a multifactorial condition with many dysfunctions including gait variability. The lumbar spine and its musculature are involved during gait and in chronic low back pain the lumbar extensors are often deconditioned. It was therefore of interest to examine relationships between lumbar kinematic variability during gait, with pain, disability and isolated lumbar extension strength in participants with chronic low back pain.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty four participants with chronic low back pain were assessed for lumbar kinematics during gait, isolated lumbar extension strength, pain, and disability. Angular displacement and kinematic waveform pattern and offset variability were examined.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Angular displacement and kinematic waveform pattern and offset variability differed across movement planes; displacement was highest and similar in frontal and transverse planes, and pattern variability and offset variability higher in the sagittal plane compared to frontal and transverse planes which were similar. Spearman's correlations showed significant correlations between transverse plane pattern variability and isolated lumbar extension strength (r=-.411) and disability (r=.401). However, pain was not correlated with pattern variability in any plane. The r(2) values suggested 80.5% to 86.3% of variance was accounted for by other variables.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Considering the lumbar extensors role in gait, the relationship between both isolated lumbar extension strength and disability with transverse plane pattern variability suggests that gait variability may result in consequence of lumbar extensor deconditioning or disability accompanying chronic low back pain. However, further study should examine the temporality of these relationships and other variables might account for the unexplained variance.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Health, Exercise and Sport Science, Southampton Solent University, UK. Electronic address: james.steele@solent.ac.uk.
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Steele
authors.affiliation: Centre for Health, Exercise and Sport Science, Southampton Solent University, UK.
authors.forename: Stewart
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bruce-Low
authors.affiliation: Department of Exercise & Sport Science, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK.
authors.forename: Dave
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.affiliation: Centre for Health, Exercise and Sport Science, Southampton Solent University, UK.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Jessop
authors.affiliation: AECC Clinic, Anglo European College of Chiropractic, UK.
authors.forename: Neil
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Osborne
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D002908:Chronic Disease; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D006233:Persons with Disabilities; D005260:Female; D005684:Gait / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007537:Isometric Contraction / Q000502:physiology; D017116:Low Back Pain / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008159:Lumbar Vertebrae / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008161:Lumbosacral Region / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D053580:Muscle Strength / Q000502:physiology*; D010147:Pain Measurement
keywords: Gait variability; Lumbar spine; MedX; VICON