| Objective: To explore the effect of extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT) combined with core stabilization training (CST) on postpartum low back pain (PLBP). Methods: A total of 120 postpartum patients with PLBP who met the inclusion criteria were selected and randomly divided into 4 groups by computer, including conventional treatment (CT) group, ESWT group, CST group and combined (ESWT+CST) group, with 30 cases in each group. All groups received CT, ESWT group received ESWT on the basis of CT group, twice a week; CST group received CST on the basis of CT group, once a day, 30 min/time, 5 times/week; ESWT+CST group received ESWT and CST simultaneously on the basis of CT group, and the above treatment was continued for 4 weeks. Visual analog scale (VAS), Roland-Morris disability questionnaire (RMDQ), Edinburgh postpartum depression Scale (EPDS), and surface electromyography were utilized to assess the pain, function, psychological factors, and electronuyogroply (EMG) signals of the erector spinae muscle, rectus abdominis muscle, external oblique abdominis muscle, and transverse abdominis muscle before and after treatment. Results: Before treatment, there was no significant difference in the general information (age, body mass index, course of disease, parity, delivery mode) among the four groups. After treatment, the pain, function, psychology and RMS of erector spine muscle, rectus abdominalis muscle, external oblique abdominalis muscle and transverse abdominalis muscle of the four groups were improved to different degrees compared with those before treatment, and the differences were statistically significant (P<0.05). After treatment, the above indexes in ESWT group, CST group and ESWT+CST group were all better than those in CT group(P<0.05). Additionally, the VAS, RMDQ, and EPDS scores in the ESWT+CST group were significantly lower than those in the ESWT group and CST group(P<0.05). The root mean square (RMS) values of erector spine muscle, rectus abdominalis muscle, external oblique abdominalis muscle, and transverse abdominalis muscle in the ESWT+CST group were higher than those in the ESWT and CST groups with statistically significant differences (P<0.05). Conclusion: The combination of ESWT and CST can effectively alleviate depression and improve lumbar function in PLBP patients, which may be related to the reduction of pain and the enhancement of muscle strength of erector spine, rectus abdominis, external oblique abdominis and transverse abdominis. |
