Clinical Prediction Rule for Clinical Lumbar Instability

Low Back Pain Clinical Trial

Official title: Identifying the Subgroup of Patient With Mechanical Low Back Pain Who Have Clinical Lumbar Instability

Status Terminated

Clinical Trial Summary

The aim of this study is to determine if assessment of additional measures of trunk neuromuscular control will improve the ability to identify patients with low back pain who successfully respond to trunk stabilization exercises.

Question: What clinical characteristics are associated with patients that respond positively to a program of core stabilization exercises?

Hypothesis: Clinical characteristics that show a decrease in trunk motor control will be associated with a positive response to stabilization exercises.

Clinical Trial Description

Clinical identification of individuals with mechanical low back pain who would benefit from a program of stabilization exercises has been a struggle for the physical therapy profession. While changes in trunk muscle recruitment and motor control have been linked to patients with chronic low back pain and hypothesized to be adaptations for spinal instability, this has not been systematically established. However, a connection between spinal instability, poor trunk motor control, and low back pain is plausible. The real problem lies with the clinical identification of the subgroup of patients in either the acute or chronic phases of low back dysfunction who would most benefit from this approach to intervention.

In creating their preliminary clinical prediction rule, Hicks et al (2005), looked at many variables including patient demographics and characteristics, hip and trunk motion, special tests for instability, and functional measures of muscle performance. However, measures of the performance of core stabilizing muscles and assessment of trunk dynamic control/ coordination were not included as potential variables. The aim of this study is to determine if assessment of additional measures of trunk neuromuscular control will improve the ability to identify patients with low back pain who successfully respond to trunk stabilization exercises. ;

Study Design

Endpoint Classification: Efficacy Study, Intervention Model: Single Group Assignment, Masking: Open Label, Primary Purpose: Diagnostic

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Back Pain
• Low Back Pain

• NCT number: NCT01085448
• Study type: Interventional
• Source: Drexel University
• Status: Terminated
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: March 2010
• Completion date: October 2013