Article

OBJECTIVE: To determine the effects of lumbar extension exercise on strength,
disability index, and pain scores in patients after lumbar discectomy surgery.
DESIGN: Prospective comparative study. SUBJECTS: Forty patients experiencing a
herniated disc at lumbar levels were divided into 4 subgroups for different
training frequencies: twice/week (group 1), once/week (group 2), once/2 weeks
(group 3), and no training (control). METHODS: After completing the initial
12-week training, all subjects participated in a 12-week follow-up training.
RESULTS: Groups 1 and 2 showed significant increases in lumbar extension strength
(26 Nm and 7 Nm, respectively), while group 3 and the control group showed
significant decreases in lumbar extension strength. Groups 1 and 2 showed
significant decreases in disability index (1.4 and 0.8 Oswestry Disability Index
points, respectively), and group 1 showed significant decreases in back and leg
pain scores (both 0.5 units on a 10-cm visual analog scale). CONCLUSION: Lumbar
extension strength and disability index improve with training frequencies of once
and twice per week, while back and leg pain improve with a training frequency of
twice per week. The clinical importance of these improvements is questionable, as
the scores were already very low after the discectomy and the magnitude of
absolute improvements were small.

Langue : ANGLAIS