Pilates to Treat Low Back Pain

Phase 3CompletedNCT01502059

Federal University of São Paulo60 enrolled

Overview

This is a randomized controlled trial, with blinded assessor to evaluate the effectiveness of Pilates to treat low back pain. Hypothesis - the Pilates group will have best results than the control group (usual medicament treatment).

Background: Low back pain (LBP) is a common problem among adults. Approximately 70-85% of the adult population experiences this painful complaint at some point in their lives, making LBP the second most common reason for a visit to a clinician. Despite the frequency of this diagnosis, conventional treatment does not always provide patients the desired results of reduced pain and return of normal function. For these patients, alternative modalities are available to assist in the control of pain. These options include chiropractic care, physical therapy, massage therapy, and modalities that fall under the auspices of complementary and alternative medicine, such as acupuncture. Unfortunately, Clinical trials evaluating the efficacy of a variety of interventions for chronic non-specific low back pain indicate limited effectiveness for most commonly applied interventions and approaches. Objectives: To evaluate the effectiveness of a mat and studio Pilates program on pain, function, quality of life and NHAI consumption for chronic non-specific low back pain patients. Methods: Eligible patient include: chronic non-specific low back pain; age between 18 and 65 years; pain ranging from 4 to 8 in a numerical pain scale. Patients with previous surgery, other causes of low back pain, fibromyalgia, regular physical activity (three or more times per week for at least three months); labor lawsuit and body mass index more than 30. Sixty patients were randomized to the Experimental Group (EG) or Control Group (CG). Patients in EG participated in 90 days of mat and studio Pilates program twice a week (50 minutes per class) and the CG remained with their usual medicament treatment and were included in a waiting list for physiotherapy. Assessment for pain (VAS), function (Roland Morris questionnaire), quality of life (SF-36) and NHAI consumption were done at baseline, after 45 days (T45), after 90 days (T90 - end of the program), after 90 days (T180 - follow up) by a blinded assessor.

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Enrollment

Conditions

Pain Quality of Life

Interventions

PilatesOTHER

Pilates training - twice a week (one hour per class) during 90 days

Eligibility

Sex: ALLMin age: 18 YearsMax age: 50 Years

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: * non specific mechanical low back pain * visual analogue scale for pain ranging from 4 to 7 Exclusion Criteria: * previous back surgery * spinal tumor * spinal fracture * pregnancy * fibromyalgia * inflammatory or infectious spinal diseases * litigant patients

Locations (1)

Universidade Federal de Sao Paulo

São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Change in pain

Measured with the visual analogue scale ranging from 0 to 10

Time frame: Baseline, after 45, 90 and 180 days

Secondary Outcomes

Change in function

Measured by the questionnaire Roland Morris

Time frame: Baseline, after 45, 90 and 180 days

Change in quality of life

Measured by the SF-36 questionnaire

Time frame: Baseline, after 45, 90 and 180 days

Change in nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) consumption

Measured by counting the number of tablets consumed per month

Time frame: Baseline, after 45, 90 and 180 days

Data from ClinicalTrials.gov

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