Functional Evaluation of the Spa-Rehabilitation Immediate Effect in The Management of Low Back Pain: Pilot Study in Ouargla, Algeria

Abstract

The region of Ouargla in the south-east of Algeria has many thermal hot springs that are still largely untapped. The aim of this pilot study is to assess the contribution of balneotherapy in the functional improvement of low back pain patients. Methods: This study concerned non-specific chronic low back pain patients treated at the balneotherapy and rehabilitation center in Ouargla, Algeria. The sample was divided into two groups for comparative purposes: the first one is the intervention group (A) receiving physical therapy combined with balneotherapy, and the second is the control group (B) receiving physical therapy alone. The response was assessed using the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) in its Arabic version. The questionnaire was given at the beginning and end of treatment. An improvement in Oswestry is considered clinically relevant if it is above 30 %. The sensitivity to changes is estimated by the standardized response mean and effect size. Results: Ten patients meeting the eligibility criteria were split equally into the two groups. We observed that 60 % (3/5) patients had a clinically relevant improvement in Oswestry in group (A) versus 20 % (1/5) patient in group (B). The effect size for group (A) and group (B) is 1.20 and 0.71, respectively. The standardized response mean is 1.13 for group (A) versus 1.01 for group (B). Conclusion: The results of the present study reiterate that in addition to conventional rehabilitation, balneotherapy can be more effective in the treatment of patients suffering from non-specific chronic low back pain.