Eli's Rehab Report

Try Motor Control Exercises for Low Back Pain

Motor control exercise for persistent, nonspecific low back pain: a systematic review. Macedo LG, Maher CG, Latimer J, McAuley JH; Phys Ther. 2009 Jan;89(1):9-25. Epub 2008 Dec. 4. Researchers investigated the effectiveness of motor control exercise (also known as specific stabilization exercise) for persistent low back pain in a systematic review of randomized controlled trials.

Findings: The review revealed that motor control exercise was better than minimal intervention in reducing pain at short-term, intermediate, and long-term follow-up, and in reducing disability at long-term follow-up. Motor control exercise was better than manual therapy for pain, disability, and quality-of-life outcomes points at intermediate follow-up, and better than other forms of exercise in reducing disability at short-term follow-up.Researchers concluded that motor control exercises, when performed in conjunction with other forms of therapy, can significantly reduce pain and disability in patients with persistent low back pain.

“Although the exercises seemed promising, until now we did not have clear evidence on whether or not they were more effective,” according to researcher Luciana G. Macedo, PT, MSc, a PhD student at The George Institute for International Health in Sydney, Australia. “It is important to note that this form of exercise is different from going to the gym or going for a walk.”