Do individuals who develop transient low back pain exhibit different postural changes than non-pain developers during prolonged standing?

Abstract

Previous literature has shown that individuals can develop transient low back pain (LBP) during a 2-h bout of unconstrained prolonged standing. The purpose of this study was to investigate the postural changes of individuals who develop LBP during standing (PD) and those who do not (NPD). Forty-one subjects (20 male, 21 female) participated in a 2-h prolonged standing occupational simulation and recorded their ratings of perceived LBP on a visual analog scale (VAS). Center of pressure changes (shifts, drifts, and fidgets) and body weight shifts were determined for each subject. All subjects showed an increase in the BW shift frequency and a decrease in average shift duration over the 2-h protocol. All NPD and female PD were consistent for many of the variables; however, male PD did not show similar patterns to the other groups, especially for anterior–posterior (AP) shift amplitude and total body weight asymmetry. Although gender differences between the pain groups were found, PD and NPD do not use different postural changes during unconstrained standing, showing that changes to postural control may be an “adaptive”, rather than “causative” response to their LBP development. Future works should concentrate on bridging the literature seen in quiet standing before and after prolonged standing and the response of PD, as well as the effect of an exercise intervention on postural control, especially for male PD.