Low back pain

BACKGROUND: Acute lumbar sprain (ALS) is common musculoskeletal disorder characterized by severe low back pain and activity limitation, which significantly impacts the patient's work and life. Immediate relief of pain and restoration of mobility in a short period of time are the main needs of patients when they visit the clinic. This study aims to evaluate the immediate efficacy of this combined treatment for ALS within 10 minutes. METHODS: This is a single-center, prospective, randomized clinical trial...

BACKGROUND: Lumbar disc herniation (LDH) is a prevalent cause of low back pain. LDH patients commonly experience paraspinal muscle atrophy and fatty infiltration (FI), which further exacerbates the symptoms of low back pain. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is crucial for assessing paraspinal muscle condition. Our study aims to develop a dual-model for automated muscle segmentation and FI annotation on MRI, assisting clinicians evaluate LDH conditions comprehensively. METHODS: The study retrospectively collected data diagnosed with LDH from December 2020 to May 2022...

Low back pain (LBP) is a highly prevalent disease. Among the various causes of LBP, one of the most frequent is myofascial pain syndrome (MPS) which affects the spinal stabilizer muscles. The aims of this study were to compare the differences in muscular electrical activity and biomechanical properties between the painful and non-painful sides in patients with unilateral MPS and to verify the feasibility of surface electromyography (sEMG) and MyotonPRO for assisting in MPS assessment. Forty patients with unilateral lumbar MPS were recruited via the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine Center of West China Hospital Sichuan University from October 2022 to October 2023...

PURPOSE: Early-stage spondylolysis (ESS) is a common cause of acute low back pain (LBP) in adolescents. When treating patients with ESS, early diagnosis is essential, yet difficult without magnetic resonance imaging. This study evaluates a self-reported questionnaire for detecting ESS. METHODS: We evaluated a total of 69 adolescents (≤ 18 years old) with acute LBP (≤ 1 month) with plain radiography, magnetic resonance imaging and a questionnaire including the following parameters: exercise frequency per week, daily training time, the necessity for stopping sports activity, pain-producing situations, pain quality, pain response to hyperextension or hyperflexion, pain location, and pain extent...

PURPOSE: The focus of this study was to comprehensively assess the clinical outcomes of lumbar fusion utilizing autogenous bone grafting and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) for the management of degenerative lumbar spinal stenosis (DLSS) in elderly individuals. METHOD: A cohort of 40 senior individuals diagnosed with DLSS, who underwent treatment at our hospital between January 2020 and March 2022. The control group consisted of 20 participants who underwent local bone grafting for intervertebral fusion, while the observation group comprised 20 individuals who received a combination of local bone grafting and PRP for lumbar fusion...

PURPOSE: Gait disturbances are common in human low back pain (LBP) patients, suggesting potential applicability to rodent LBP models. This study aims to assess the influence of disc-associated LBP on gait in female Sprague Dawley rats and explore the utility of the open-source Gait Analysis Instrumentation and Technology Optimized for Rodents (GAITOR) suite as a potential alternative tool for spontaneous pain assessment in a previously established LBP model. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Disc degeneration was surgically induced using a one-level disc scrape injury method, and microcomputed tomography was used to assess disc volume loss...

RATIONALE: Bertolotti syndrome (BS) is characterized by radiculopathy caused by structural anomalies. Despite the structural deformity, conservative treatment is predominantly recommended due to surgery-related complications. Because of the diagnosis complexity, the incidence and contributing factors of BS, remain controversial. We report the case of a patient with BS who was treated with integrative Korean medicine (IKM). Moreover, we evaluated the epidemiological characteristics of lumbosacral transitional vertebrae (LSTV) from medical records of patients diagnosed with LSTV at 4 different medical clinics of Korean medicine...

CONTEXT: Majority of research surrounding the predictive value of clinical measurements and assessments for future athletic injury does not differentiate between contact and non-contact injuries. OBJECTIVE: We assessed the association between clinical measures and questionnaire data collected prior to sport participation and the incidence of non-contact lower extremity (LE) injuries among Division III collegiate athletes. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study...

INTRODUCTION: Caudal epidural steroid injections (ESIs) are commonly employed in the management of low back pain and radiculopathy. Despite their widespread use, practice patterns among physicians performing caudal ESIs can vary significantly. This study aims to identify variability in injection techniques utilized by physicians during caudal ESIs, focusing on steroid use, needle selection, and catheter use. This study also looks at major permanent neurological injuries related to caudal ESIs...

BACKGROUND: Intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) is a chronic disabling disease caused by degeneration of nucleus pulposus cells, decreased activity and the number of nucleus pulposus cells, decreased extracellular matrix, and infiltration of inflammatory factors, resulting in low back and leg pain. Recent studies have shown that non-surgical treatment is of great significance in reversing the progression of degenerative disc disease, and there are more relevant literature reports. However, there is no bibliometric analysis in this area...

BACKGROUND: A new advanced practice model of care enables French physiotherapists to perform medical acts for low back pain (LBP) patients as first-contact physiotherapists (FCPs). OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to determine the self-perceived competency of FCPs and to further explore factors underpinning this feeling. METHODS: A mixed-methods explanatory sequential design was conducted. A survey was used to self-assess the perceived competency of FCPs in performing medical tasks...

OBJECTIVE: This study evaluated the effectiveness of clinic-based and telerehabilitation-based motor control exercises in individuals with chronic low back pain three months post-treatment. METHODS: Forty-two participants were randomized to either clinic-based or telerehabilitation-based groups, performing exercises three times weekly for eight weeks. Assessments were conducted pre-intervention, post-intervention and one and three months after the intervention. The primary outcome was pain intensity (Visual Analog Scale) for low back pain...

BACKGROUND: Global policy and guidelines for low back pain (LBP) management promote physical activity and self-management yet adherence is poor and a decline in outcomes is common following discharge from treatment. Health coaching is effective at improving exercise adherence, self-efficacy, and social support in individuals with chronic conditions, and may be an acceptable, cost-effective way to support people in the community following discharge from treatment for LBP. AIM: This qualitative study aimed to understand which aspects of a community over-the-phone health-coaching program, were liked and disliked by patients as well as their perceived outcomes of the service after being discharged from LBP treatment...

OBJECTIVES: Inflammatory low back pain (IBP) is a typical feature of spondylarthritis (SpA). IBP can be caused by infections, drugs, and different malignancies. Among cancers, hematologic malignancies and solid tumors can cause IBD either paraneoplastically or through metastasis. In this study, we aimed to present the demographic and clinical characteristics of our patients who presented with IBP in the last 10 years and whose final diagnosis was malignancy. METHODS: Thirty-four patients who presented with inflammatory low back pain in the last 10 years and were diagnosed with malignancy as the final diagnosis were included in the study...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Low back pain commonly causes disability, often managed with conservative image-guided interventions before surgery. Research has documented racial disparities with these and other non-pharmacologic treatments. We posited that individual chart reviews may provide insight into the disparity of care types through documented patient/provider discussions and their effect on treatment plans. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective analysis involved adults newly diagnosed with low back pain within a large Utah healthcare system...

BACKGROUND: Low back pain is a very common condition that affects most people at some point in their lives. It represents a burden on those affected, reducing their ability to participate in activities of normal life; at the same time, dealing with it increases the economic costs of healthcare. AIM:  The aim of this guideline was to contribute to WHO activities for reducing the impact of low back pain in adults and to support the WHO approach to integrated care for older people in primary care...

OBJECTIVE: To review the role of sacro-iliac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the diagnosis of axial spondyloarthritis (AxSpA), with a focus on gender differences. METHODS: The experience of the authors and the results of an informal literature review are reported. RESULTS: Inflammatory changes of the sacro-iliac joint are the hallmark of AxSpA. Early, non-radiographic sacroiliitis may be diagnosed with MRI through the assessment of bone marrow edema (BMO) as well as concomitant structural damage...

BACKGROUND: Musculoskeletal changes occur during pregnancy; one-half of pregnant women experienced low back pain and/or pelvic pain during pregnancy. Prescription opioid use for Medicaid enrolled pregnant women has increased dramatically due to severe low back pain/pelvic pain. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to explore the prevalence of low back pain/pelvic pain and related risk factors among a broader population. DESIGN: This is a retrospective cohort study...

Background: The global increase in the elderly population has led to a higher prevalence of degenerative lumbar spinal diseases. Epidural steroid injection (ESI) is a widely used procedure for managing lower back pain. This study investigated the association of preprocedural frailty status with the efficacy of ESI in elderly patients diagnosed with degenerative lumbar spinal diseases. Methods: This retrospective observational study included patients aged 65 years and older who underwent lumbar ESI. Frailty status (robust, prefrail, and frail) assessed via the Frailty Phenotype Questionnaire was collected along with demographic and clinical parameters...

Intervertebral disc herniation, a prevalent condition in spinal surgery that frequently results in low back pain and lower limb dysfunction, significantly impacting patients' quality of life. Several factors, including spine biomechanics, biology, nutrition, injury, and abnormal inflammatory responses, have been associated with the development of intervertebral disc herniation. Among these factors, abnormal inflammatory responses have received considerable attention as a crucial mediator of both clinical symptoms and disease progression during the intervertebral disc herniation process...