The following is a summary of “Relationships between spinal amplitude of movement, pain and disability in low back pain: A systematic review and meta-analysis,” published in the July 2023 issue of Pain by Nzamba et al.

The connection between changes in spinal movement and low back pain (LBP) has not been definitively established. Researchers performed a retrospective study investigating the links between spinal movement amplitude, disability, and pain intensity in patients with LBP. Relevant articles were searched in PubMed, CINAHL, Embase, Pedro, and Web of Science until 14th March 2023. Risk of bias assessment was done using the Quality in Prognostic Studies Tool. Correlations & meta-analytic structural equation modeling (MASEM) were used to analyze the relationships between movement amplitude, disability, and pain intensity with cross-sectional & longitudinal data.

The results showed 9,001 subjects in 106 studies. Larger movement amplitude linked to lower disability (pooled coefficient:−0.25, 95% CI:[−0.29 to−0.21]; 69/5,899) and lower pain intensity (−0.13, [−0.17 to−0.09]; 74/5806) in cross-sectional data. Longitudinal data showed increased movement amplitude linked to decreased disability (−0.23, 95% CI:[−0.31to−0.15]; 33/2,437) & pain intensity (−0.25, 95% CI: [−0.33 to−0.17]; 38/2,172).MASEM confirmed these results and further demonstrated the minimal influence of movement amplitude on the pain intensity–disability relationship.

Investigators concluded the amplitude of movement directly influences pain intensity, supporting interventions to reduce spinal signs in patients with LBP.

Source: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ejp.2162