Objective: The primary purpose of the present study was to compare the differences in lower extremity kinematic parameters in individuals who have chronic non-specific low back pain (CNLBP) with healthy control subjects (CTRL) during subphase of the stance phase. The secondary purpose was to compare the average walking speed of individuals who had CNLBP with CTRL during stance phase.

Materials and Methods: The present study was conducted with 26 patients, 13 of 26 were participants with CNLBP and the other 13 were CTRL. To study the subject’s walking characteristics, 3D motion analysis was applied. Each subject was attached to 47 retroreflective markers and asked to walk barefoot on a 10-meter walkway at the preferred walking speed. The independent t-test and Mann Whitney U-test were used to compare joint excursions of each subphase of the stance phase and the average walking speed between two groups.

Results: The CNLBP group had significantly lower forefoot motion in the sagittal plane during the initial contact phase than CTRL group, (p=0.017). They exhibited significantly lower hip motion in the sagittal plane (p=0.043), and lower knee motion in the transverse plane (p=0.007) during the forefoot contact phase as well. The CNLBP group exhibited significantly increased rearfoot motion in the frontal plane (p=0.002) during the foot flat phase. Moreover, the CNLBP group had significantly lower hip motion in the sagittal plane during the push-off phase (p=0.033).

Conclusion: Individuals with CNLBP might modify their walking characteristics of the lower extremities and walk slower when compared with healthy persons to accommodate the pain they were dealing with.

Keywords: Lower Extremity; Kinematics; Chronic Non-specific Low Back Pain; Gait; Gait Speed

DOI: 10.35755/jmedassocthai.2023.09.13863

Received 10 May 2023 | Revised 24 May 2023 | Accepted 31 May 2023