Spinal Stabilization Exercise with and without Whole–Body Vibration: A Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial

The present study aimed to compare the impacts of core stability exercises with and without Whole Body Vibration (WBV) training sessions lasting two weeks on trunk muscle endurance in patients with non-specific chronic low back. 

Methods and Materials:

Thirty participants were randomly placed into either a WBV group or a spinal stabilization group at Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, in 2013. The dependent variables manipulated included the abdominal and spinal muscular endurance, assessed prior to, midway through, and after two weeks and the WBV or spinal stabilization intervention program implemented using stabilizer pressure biofeedback unit and Biering Sorensen test.

Changes in transverse abdominal and internal oblique muscle endurance in prone position were statistically significant among the participants in both groups (P<0.05). However, changes in transverse abdominal muscle endurance in supine position and multifidus muscle endurance were not observed to be statistically significant in both groups. In addition, inter-group analysis showed that except for the percentage of changes of multifidus muscle endurance, the vibration group demonstrated significant improvement over the non-vibration group.

As no significant difference was observed between the two treatment methods, none of treatment methods was more effective comparatively in terms of improving mid-term trunk muscle endurance.