慢性腰痛患者に対する運動療法が体幹筋筋厚に及ぼす影響

Changes in Trunk Muscle Thickness after Therapeutic Exercises for Chronic Low Back Pain

　本研究では慢性腰痛患者を対象に運動療法を指導し，自宅での自主トレーニングを行わせ，腰痛および体幹筋の筋厚の変化について調査した．対象者は18名(男性4名，女性14名)で，3カ月間の体幹深部筋に注目した運動療法を実施した．介入前と介入3カ月後を比較した結果，腰痛評価のVASは有意に減少した．体幹筋の筋厚については，腹横筋，第3腰椎高位および第4腰椎高位の多裂筋において有意な増加を認めた．

　Purpose：This study investigated the effectiveness of lumbar stabilization exercises as a treatment for chronic low back pain.

　Methods：The subjects were 18 chronic low back pain patients (4 males and 14 females, average age：53.3 yrs).　Chronic low back pain was defined as pain that persists for more than 3 months.　The therapeutic exercises consisted of active transversus abdominis contraction (drawing-in) and maintaining the prone bridge position (hand-knee).　The exercises were conducted during a 3-month intervention period.　Pain was assessed by means of the Visual Analog Scale, and the thickness of trunk muscles was measured by ultrasonography.　Values before and after the intervention were compared.

　Results and Discussion：The degree of pain was significantly reduced in comparison with before the intervention.　The thickness of the transversus abdominis muscle and lumbar multidus muscles (third and fourth lumbar vertebra level) had significantly improved after the intervention.　The results of this study suggested that lumbar stabilization exercise is effective in the increase of the muscular thicknesses and the decrease of the low back pain.