Biofeedback Physical Therapy With the Hybrid Assistive Limb (HAL) Lumbar Type for Chronic Low Back Pain: A Pilot Study

Objective There are many treatments for chronic low back pain, including various medications, exercise therapy, orthotics, and surgery, but no treatment is definitive. We hypothesized that biofeedback therapy using the hybrid assistive limb (HAL) lumbar type would have some immediate effects on chro...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Curēus (Palo Alto, CA) Vol. 14; no. 3; p. e23475
Main Authors:	Yasunaga, Yoshihiro, Koizumi, Ren, Toyoda, Taro, Koda, Masao, Mamizuka, Naotaka, Sankai, Yoshiyuki, Yamazaki, Masashi, Miura, Kousei
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	United States Cureus Inc 25-03-2022 Cureus
Subjects:	Back pain Biofeedback Electrodes Flexibility Hip joint Muscle function Orthopedics Patients Physical therapy Skin hip flexibility low back pain biofeedback physical therapy exoskeleton robots hybrid assistive limb
Online Access:	Get full text
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Summary:	Objective There are many treatments for chronic low back pain, including various medications, exercise therapy, orthotics, and surgery, but no treatment is definitive. We hypothesized that biofeedback therapy using the hybrid assistive limb (HAL) lumbar type would have some immediate effects on chronic low back pain. The purpose of this pilot study was to assess whether immediate changes in low back pain and hip flexibility and any other adverse events would occur following the HAL biofeedback physical therapy. Methods This was a single-center, pilot, prospective, single-arm study of outpatient biofeedback physical therapy using the HAL lumbar type for patients with chronic low back pain. Patients underwent a 10-minute biofeedback physical therapy (lumbar flexion-extension, sit-to-stand, and squat) with the HAL lumbar type (in one session). The visual analog scale (VAS) score of low back pain during lumbar flexion, extension, lateral bending, and rotation was evaluated. The finger-to-floor distance (FFD), straight leg raising test (SLR), and the Thomas test were measured to assess hip flexibility. Results All 35 participants (14 men and 21 women) (100%) conducted a biofeedback HAL therapy session using the HAL lumbar type. No participant had deterioration of low back pain. No adverse events occurred. After the biofeedback therapy using the HAL lumbar type, SLR demonstrated a significant positive change with large effect size and sufficient power. Lumbar VAS during lumbar flexion and extension and FFD showed a significant positive change with medium effect size and adequate power. Conclusions Biofeedback therapy using the HAL lumbar type is an option for intervention in chronic low back pain.
Bibliography:	ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23
ISSN:	2168-8184 2168-8184
DOI:	10.7759/cureus.23475