Assessment of aerobic fitness in individuals with and without nonspecific chronic low back pain: a pilot study

Abstract

Aerobic fitness assessment in patients with low back pain (LBP) may help clinicians to plan how to progress the aerobic training. This was a pilot study designed to evaluate the performance of people with LBP on two different aerobic fitness tests performed on a treadmill and to compare the measure of aerobic fitness between people with LBP and healthy individuals. Ten people with LBP and 10 healthy individuals underwent two aerobic fitness protocols, the modified Bruce and maximum incremental test protocols, performed on a treadmill. Data collected during the protocols were: oxygen consumption, heart rate (HR), blood lactate concentration, respiratory quotient, rating of perceived exertion response, and pain intensity. Independent t-test and two-way analysis of variance were used respectively to assess difference between groups characteristics and physiological responses to the protocols. Our results showed that both groups were similar with regards to age (P = 0.839) or HRrest (P = 0.730) but the LBP group showed higher BMI compared to the healthy group (P = 0.031). Regarding the performance of both groups on the aerobic fitness tests, the only significant difference was reported for respiratory quotient which showed a main effect of test (P = 0.015) with higher values favoring the modified Bruce over the incremental test. Our study showed that most people with LBP are able to perform and tolerate both aerobic fitness tests but no significant differences between people with LBP and healthy individuals on both protocols were reported.

Relation between Physical Fitness Components and the Occurrence and Subjective Intensity of Back Pain in Secondary School Adolescents

“…Poor endurance seems a factor for increased risk of suffering from back pain as well [ 17 ]. However, in general, research on the association of PF and back pain is still inconclusive [ 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 ], which may also be attributed to the overall low volume of studies, the risk of bias, and the poor quality of the evidence [ 21 ]. Despite our results brining new data in line with the body of literature supporting a positive effect of general PF on back pain, further and deeper research should be carried out in this sense.…”

“…The role of aerobic exercise and cardiorespiratory fitness is further recognized in previous studies [ 64 , 65 ]. However, other authors have presented contrasting findings on cardiorespiratory fitness: for instance, Fernandes et al [ 18 ] compared this variable in individuals with and without clinically diagnosed back pain, finding no significant differences and adding that the aerobic performances of both groups in different activities were comparable. A systematic review adds that data on the effect of aerobic fitness on back pain is contradictory to the date [ 21 ].…”

“…Furthermore, poor endurance seems to increase the odds of back pain occurrence in adolescents [ 17 ]. On the other side, other authors found no significant association in this regard: a study on individuals with clinically diagnosed back pain suggests that their cardiorespiratory fitness is similar to that of people not suffering from back pain and that both groups can perform fitness activities with comparable results [ 18 ]; additionally, Tanaka et al [ 19 ] state that other variables, such as visceral adipose tissue, may have a higher significant impact on back pain than physical fitness. The lack of conclusiveness in this field is also highlighted in recent review works.…”

Association of non-chronic low back pain with physical function, endurance, fatigability, and quality of life in middle- and older-aged adults: Findings from Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging

“…However, a cross-sectional survey of 2,766 well-functioning community-dwelling older adults found a negative association between LBP and self-reported, but not objectively-measured physical function [ 6 ]. Moreover, although some authors have demonstrated an impact of LBP on endurance performance [ 7 ], a recent study did not confirm significant difference for endurance performance between individuals with and without non-specific LBP [ 8 ]. These previous studies primarily included patients with chronic LBP (>12 weeks), with the relationship between LBP and functional outcomes in patients with non-chronic LBP (<12 weeks) still underreported.…”

“…The healthcare burden associated with LBP is high, not only due to direct costs (medical appointments, exams, medications, and hospitalizations) but also loss of work productivity [2,3]. However, despite LBP's clinical and economic significance, studies examining the relationship between the presence and intensity of LBP with reported and observed physical function and health related quality of life (HRQoL) have had inconsistent findings [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12].…”