Shiatsu, a specific type of massage, was used as an intervention in this study of 66 individuals complaining of lower back pain. Each individual was measured on state/trait anxiety and pain level before and after four shiatsu treatments. Each subject was then called 2 days following each treatment and asked to quantify the level of pain. Both pain and anxiety decreased significantly over time. ...

OBJECTIVE Type A behaviour pattern, characterised by excessive competitiveness, impatience, hostility and time urgency, has been previously investigated as a risk factor for coronary heart disease. There are few studies concerning musculoskeletal symptoms and type A behaviour. Could there be a higher frequency of musculoskeletal symptoms with a more pronounced type A behaviour? DESIGN A cross...

Degenerative spondylolisthesis is most common at the L4/L5 level and in women. There are several possible reasons for its predilection at this site, but there is no satisfactory explanation for the predominance in women. We considered that pregnancy was a possible influence. We reviewed the records and radiographs of 949 women and 120 men aged 50 years and over who had attended a spinal surgeon...

BACKGROUND Group cognitive behavioural intervention (CBI) is effective in reducing low-back pain and disability in comparison to advice in primary care. The aim of this analysis was to investigate the impact of compliance on estimates of treatment effect and to identify factors associated with compliance. METHODS In this multicentre trial, 701 adults with troublesome sub-acute or chronic low-...

OBJECTIVES To assess whether cognitive behavioural (CB) approaches improve disability, pain, quality of life and/or work disability for patients with low back pain (LBP) of any duration and of any age. METHODS Nine databases were searched for randomised controlled trials (RCTs) from inception to November 2014. Two independent reviewers rated trial quality and extracted trial data. Standardise...

BACKGROUND Empirical evidence suggests that affective responses to pain are changed in chronic pain. The investigation of startle responses to pain might contribute to clarifying whether such alterations also expand to motivational defensive reactions. We aimed at comparing startle responses to tonic heat pain with high threat (HT) or low threat (LT) in patients with chronic musculoskeletal pai...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE Psychological factors are assumed to predict persistent or recurrent musculoskeletal pain. The influence of psychological factors in patients with low-back pain (LBP) or shoulder pain was explored to study whether there is similarity regarding the factors that predict persisting pain and disability. METHODS Patients presenting in primary care with a new episode of sho...

BACKGROUND Exercise is an effective treatment for patients with sub-acute and chronic low back pain (LBP). Patients with a movement control impairment (MCI) can be diagnosed as a subgroup of patients with LBP. Unknown is which exercise intervention is most beneficial for this subgroup. This study assessed the short-term effect of a specific exercise program targeting movement control impairment...

AIM The aim of this study was to investigate the correlation of the Symptom Checklist-90-R (SCL-90-R) anxiety, depression, and somatization subscale scores with chronic low back pain. MATERIAL AND METHODS In this study, 75 patients admitted with the complaint of chronic low back pain (patient group) and 75 healthy persons (control group) were evaluated. SCL-90-R anxiety, depression, and somat...