Role of Pilates in Rehabilitation: A Literature Review

Abstract

Introduction Pilates was the brainchild of Joseph H Pilates. Pilates appeared during World War I to rehabilitate those injured by the war. Recently, the method started to be used by health professionals with the objective of integrating body and mind, because it improves fitness, flexibility, strength, posture, balance and body awareness. Exercises, first gained recognition among professional dancers, actors and choreographers but has become more popular and is now regularly applied in sport, fitness and physiotherapy. Pilates works by combining breathing techniques with special stretches. It is a method of exercise which focuses on improving body’s core by making the body more flexible & stronger. Objective To establish evidence based role of pilates exercises in wide range of rehabilitation programmes. Design review of literature Data collection: Relevant articles in English were retrieved through a search of MEDLINE and PubMed. Key search terms were lower back muscle endurance & core muscle assessment test. The principal criterion for inclusion was as follows: any study that discussed or tested lower trunk & core muscle endurance test. The tests used for rehabilitation protocol & test using stability ball related articles were excluded. Thirty-seven of the initial studies are included in this review. Data Synthesis: Recent research, meta analysis, clinical oriented first thirty literatures taken in the study. Results Pilates commonly used in low back pain prevention & rehabilitation, balance, strength, flexibility, body composition & relaxation enhancement programmes. Pilates is a uniquely precise and intelligent approach to exercise and body-conditioning, which gives you a leaner, suppler, more toned body and a calmer, more relaxed mind& its role not limited to Low back pain rehabilitation. Conclusion Pilates have wide range of application in rehabilitation. But more systemic research required which focus on the components of blinding, concealed allocation, subject adherence, intentionto- treat analysis, and follow-up designs.