Effects of Exercise Intervention in Patients With Spondylolisthesis Related LBP (EXER-SPO-TNC)

University of Primorska

Status: Completed

Conditions: Spondylolisthesis; Low Back Pain

Treatments: Procedure: Exercise intervention; Procedure: Exercise and e-stim

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT01985776

UP-FVZ-ExerciseSpondylolisth

Details and patient eligibility

About

The first purpose of this study is to define parameters of the trunk neuromuscular functions that are pathologically altered in patients with low back pain due to spondylolytic spondylolisthesis. The second and also the main purpose of the study is to examine the effects of exercise intervention on patients with low back pain due to spondylolytic spondylolisthesis. Our overall hypothesis is that specific exercise intervention will improve neuromuscular functions of the trunk in patients with low back pain due to spondylolytic spondylolisthesis.

Full description

Low back pain is known to affect a considerable portion (> 75%) of the society, causing enormous financial burden for the healthcare systems.

Exercise interventions incorporated into low back pain patients rehabilitation protocols are known as successful treatment strategies, but ore often focused on strength training and not on functional stabilization. Spondylolytic spondylolisthesis is one of the most known types of spine instabilities. To date, no studies examined the effects of exercise intervention on patients with low back pain due to spondylolytic spondylolisthesis. Research will be carried out as a cross-sectional study, where patients with spondylolytic spondylolisthesis will be randomly arranged in one controlled and two experimental groups. For the forth group healthy asymptomatic participants will be recruited.

Exercise intervention will last 12 weeks with a frequency of three times a week and duration of 60 minutes per training unit. Exercise intervention will include congregated set of trunk stabilisation exercises, starting with simple isometric tasks. Dynamic and more complex movements will be added progressively to achieve whole body tasks involving fast and sudden movements.

Neuromuscular functions of the trunk will be measured before and after the intervention.

Enrollment: 48 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 20 to 60 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Low back pain presence for at least three months.
• Age between 20 and 60 years.
• Isthmic Spondylolisthesis (1st and 2nd level according to Meyerding) at L5/S1 and L4/L5.
• Body mass index below 30.
• without neurological pathological conditions.

Exclusion criteria

• Intermittent claudication pain.
• History of operational treatment of the lumbar spine.
• Traumatic, oncological, infectional pathology of the spine
• Degenerative stenosis of the lumbar spinal canal.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Factorial Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

---

48 participants in 4 patient groups

Exercise intervention

Active Comparator group

Description:

Patients will functional stabilisation exercise for the trunk.

Treatment:

Procedure: Exercise intervention

Exercise and e-stim

Active Comparator group

Description:

Patients will receive exercise intervention and electrical stimulation simultaneously.

Treatment:

Procedure: Exercise and e-stim

Patients control

No Intervention group

Description:

Patients will not receive any treatment but could use compression belt as per usual.

Healthy control

No Intervention group

Description:

Healthy asymptomatic participants who will not receive any treatment.