Effects of six-week exercise training protocol on pain relief in patients with lumbar disc herniation

摘要

Introduction: Paraspinal, abdominal, and core muscles are playing the main role in lumbar disc herniation. The aim of the present study was to investigate the efficacy of a 6 weeks exercise training protocol on pain relief in males and females with lumbar disc herniation. Methods: In this before-after trial study, 64 patients with lumbar disc herniation were assigned to a 6 weeks exercise training program. Training protocol included leg press, trunk lateral flexion, trunk rotation, trunk flexion/extension, and stretching exercises in two sessions a week with 25-30 minutes each. Pain was measured with visual analog scale (VAS) at 1st, 6th, and 12th sessions. Results: A total of 64 patients (13 males with mean age 47.53 ± 11.71 years and 51 females with mean age 46.50 ± 11.76 years) completed the protocol. The pain was significantly reduced in both males and females during sessions 6 and 12 in comparison with the first session (P = 0.001). The amount of pain relief in males was higher than females (P = 0.047). Conclusion: About 6 weeks exercise training program could reduce more pain in males with lumbar disc herniation compared to females. This core stabilizing exercise protocol could be a good recommendation for patients with disk herniated low back pain (LBP).