Abstract
ObjectivesThis study aims to investigate the electrical properties of lumbar paraspinal muscles (LPM) of patients with acute lower back pain (LBP) and to study a new approach, namely Electrical Impedance Myography (EIM), for reliable, low-cost, non-invasive, and real-time assessment of muscle-strained acute LBP.DesignPatients with muscle-strained acute LBP (n = 30) are compared to a healthy reference group (n = 30). Electrical properties of LPM are studied.BackgroundEIM is a novel technique under development for the assessment of neuromuscular disease. Therefore, it is speculated that EIM can be employed for the assessment of muscle-strained acute LBP.MethodsSurface electrodes, in 2-electrode configurations, was used to measure the electrical properties of patient's and healthy subject's LPM at six different frequencies (0.02, 25.02, 50.02, 1000.02, 3000.02, and 5000.02 kHz), with the amplitude of the applied voltage limited to 200 mV. Parameters of impedance (Z), extracellular resistance (Re), intracellular resistance (Ri), and the ratio of extracellular resistance to intracellular resistance (Re/Ri) of LBP patient's and healthy subject's LPM were assessed to see if significant difference in values obtained in muscle-strained acute LBP patients existed.ResultsIntraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) showed that all measurements (ICC>0.96 for all studying parameters: Z, Re, Ri, and Re/Ri) had good reliability and validity. Significant differences were found on Z between LBP patient's and healthy subject's LPM at all studying frequencies, with p<0.05 for all frequencies. It was also found that Re (p<0.05) and Re/Ri (p<0.05) of LBP patient's LPM was significant smaller than that of healthy subjects while Ri (p<0.05) of LBP patient's LPM was significant greater than that of healthy subjects. No statistical significant difference was found between the left and right LPM of LBP patients and healthy subjects on the four studying parameters.ConclusionEIM is a promising technique for assessing muscle-strained acute LBP.
Highlights
Lower back pain (LBP) is common in the general population, affecting 60–80% of all adults at some point in their life [1,2]
Electrical Impedance Myography (EIM) measurements of the lumbar paraspinal muscles (LPM) were made with LBP patients and healthy subjects lying on a bed in the prone position
Two electrodes were positioned along the left LPM region of the LBP patients and healthy subjects, with the center of the distal electrode 5 cm below the fifth lumbar vertebra and the center of the two electrodes was 5 cm apart
Summary
Lower back pain (LBP) is common in the general population, affecting 60–80% of all adults at some point in their life [1,2]. In the United States and United Kingdom between 70% and 80% of the adult population have suffered from LBP at some time and have contacted a general practitioner [3,4,5]. LBP is one of the most common symptoms reported by Taiwan people [6,7]. The life and 12-month incidence rate of LBP among Taiwan people was 37.0% and 18.9%, respectively [6]. LBP is a common reason for patients to seek medical care. It is speculated that EIM can be employed for the assessment of muscle-strained acute LBP
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