Riassunto dello studio

Sixty patients who were diagnosed with degenerative disc disease with or without spinal stenosis who underwent lumbar spine fusion (LSF) were randomized to undergo 4 weeks of physical therapy consisting of stabilization exercises alone (n=20), stabilization exercises combined with neural mobilization (NM; n=20), or stabilization exercises combined with myofascial release (MFR; n=20). Outcomes of interest included the following: pain scores on a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), disability evaluated on the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), and lumbar range of motion (ROM) (i.e. left lateral flexion, left rotation, right rotation, right lateral flexion). All outcomes were measured at the completion of intervention and 1 month post-intervention. Results revealed that VAS pain and ODI scores were statistically significantly in favour of the NM group compared to the MFR group, as well as in NM group when compared to stabilization exercise alone group, at all timepoints (p<0.05 for all). ODI and VAS pain scores were statistically significantly favored in the MFR group when compared to stabilization exercise alone group at all timepoints (p<0.05 for all). All other outcomes were not statistically significantly different between groups at all time periods (p>0.05 for all).