EFFECT OF SEGMENTAL STABILIZATION AND PILATES ON CHRONIC NON-SPECIFIC LOW BACK PAIN: PILOT STUDY

Background: Low back pain is an important health condition with major socioeconomic consequences and is associated with high costs for the health system, absenteeism at work and reduced functional performance. It is one of the most relevant health problems in the elderly, with point prevalence estimates higher than other musculoskeletal conditions. Objectives: To verify the effect of segmental stabilization versus the Pilates method in the elderly with chronic low back pain. Methods: The study included 9 elderly women with chronic low back pain randomized into two groups: Segmental Stabilization Group (SG n = 5; age 65.2 ± 4.32; Body Mass Index - BMI 29.99 ± 4.65) and Pilates Group (PG n = 4; age 67.75 ± 7.13; BMI 26.49 ± 4.06). Both groups underwent 16 individual sessions of 60 minutes twice a week and avaliated before and after 8 weeks. Pain was assessed using the Visual Analogue Pain Scale; functional disability, by Oswestry’s disability index; excessive fear of movement and physical activity, using the Tampa Kinesiophobia Scale; level of confidence in the balance for specific activities, on the Activity-Specific Balance Confidence (ABC) scale and; activation of the transverse muscle of the abdomen, by the pressure biofeedback unit Stabilizer of the Chatanooga brand. The allocation and evaluations of the participants were performed by a blind examiner. The data were analyzed using the Student’s t-test with the level of significance (p≤0.05). Results: The data show significant differences in the reduction of pain intensity (p= 0.022) and functional disability (p=0.023) only in SG and improvement in kinesiophobia (p=0.007) only in PG. The level of confidence in the balance for specific activities was better in the SG when compared to the PG (p=0.059). There was no difference in the activation of the transversus abdominis in both groups. Conclusion: The results indicate that the segmental stabilization was effective to improve pain and functional disability, Pilates to improve the degree of kinesiophobia and the SG obtained a better result when compared to the PG regarding the level of confidence in the balance for specific activities. Both techniques had a great effect on improving functional capacity and on the level of confidence in the balance for specific activities. It is suggested to carry out studies with a larger number of participants and follow-up evaluation to assess the long-term effects. References: [1]Boonstra AM, Preuper HRS, Reneman MF, Posthumus JB, Stewart RE. Reliability and validity of the visual analogue scale for disability in patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain. IJSR 2008; 3(2):165-9. [2]Marques AP, Mendes YC, Taddei U, Pereira CAB, Assumpcao A. Brazilian-Portuguese translation and cross cultural adaptation of the activities-specific balance confidence ABC) scale. Braz J Phys Ther 2013; 17(2): 170-8. [3]Siqueira FB, Teixeira-Salmela LF, Magalhaes LC. Analise das propriedades psicometricas da versao brasileira da escala tampa de cinesiofobia. Acta Orto Bras 2007; 15(1): 19-24. [4]Viggato R, Alexandre NMC, Correa Filho HR. Development of a Braziliam Portuguese version of the Oswestry Disability Index: cross-cultural adaptation, reliability, and validity. Spine 2007; 32(4):481-6. Acknowledgments: Coordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior (CAPES) Disclosure of Interests: None declared