Mechanical Perturbations of the Walking Surface Reveal Unaltered Axial Trunk Stiffness in Chronic Low Back Pain Patients.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Patients with chronic low back pain (CLBP) often demonstrate altered timing of thorax rotations in the transverse plane during gait. Increased axial trunk stiffness has been claimed to cause this movement pattern.

Objectives

The objective of this study was to assess whether axial trunk stiffness is increased in gait in CLBP patients.

Methods

15 CLBP patients and 15 healthy controls walked on a treadmill that imposed rotational perturbations in the transverse plane. The effect of these perturbations on transverse pelvis, thorax and trunk (thorax relative to pelvis) rotations was evaluated in terms of residual rotations, i.e., the deviation of these movements from the unperturbed patterns. In view of the heterogeneity of the CLBP group, we additionally perf

SUBMITTER: Prins MR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4911008 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature