| Popis: |
BACKGROUND: Low back pain and disc herniation are common problems in the world population, being characterized by discomfort in the region of the spine, resulting in functional capacity and quality of life reduced. Some of the causes of these conditions seem to be associated with the biomechanical imbalance of the muscles that act in the spine. There are methods to assess the level of activation and strength of the stabilizing muscles of the spine, such as the Pressure Biofeedback Unit (PBU). This study aims to compare the level of activation of the transverse abdomen muscle and back strength in healthy, low back pain and herniated disc individuals. METHODOS: a cross-sectional study was carried out with 30 men that were homogeneously distributed in three groups: healthy (HG), with low back pain (LBPG) and with herniated disc (HDG). The primary outcomes were the level of activation of the transversus abdominis, assessed by PBU, and back strength, assessed by dynamometry. Pain, flexibility and disability were evaluated as secondary outcomes.RESULTS: The mean age of the participants in this study was 30.47 ± 9.74 years. Regarding the activation of the transversus abdominis, no differences were found between groups (p = 0.155). For strength, LBPG and HDG were different compared to HG (p = 0.028 and p = 0.045, respectively). Pain was different between the HG and both LBPG and HDG (all p 0.05) were found. The HDG had the highest disability score and was statistically different of the HG (p = 0.005), but with no difference from LBPG (p = 0.087).CONCLUSION: the activation of the tranversus abdominis is similar between healthy, non-specific back pain and herniated disc individuals; however, the latter presents a reduced level of strength and more disability. |
