Effectiveness of Exercise and Local Steroid Injections for the Thoracolumbar Junction Syndrome (The Maigne’s Syndrome) Treatment

PURPOSE Patients diagnosed as thoracolumbar junction syndrome were divided into 3 treatment groups and the results of each modality were compared. MATERIALS AND METHOD 30 Patients were included in the study with the definitive diagnosis of Maigne's Syndrome. The first group received exercise therapy, the second group was treated with local steroid injections and the third group was the combination therapy group of both injection and exercise. FINDINGS 30 Patients were divided into 3 groups. Each group had 10 patients. The average age of the groups was detected to be 23.43 ± 3.75. A flattening was detected in 4 patients of the first group (40%), 6 patients of the second group (60%) and 4 patients of the third group (40%) during the lumbar lordosis. While the average difference of the VAS values was (2.80) as the lowest for the injection group before and after treatment at rest, the highest value (3.30) was observed in the combined treatment group. The results shown on the Oswestry scale of the first month difference (16.10), and the third month difference (22.40) were statistically better than the other groups in the combined treatment group. RESULTS As a result of this study, while in all three treatment groups in the Oswestry scale, VAS scores at rest or at movement during the regular controls before and after the treatment showed statistically significant difference; the best results were obtained in the group administered to the combined injection and exercise therapy.