Researchers have revealed that early physical therapy might help ease lower back pain but makes little difference over the long term.
In a study involving more than 200 patients with recent onset of lower back pain for a year, randomly assigning them to receive either physical therapy or no treatment for four weeks, the group assigned physical therapy recorded no significant difference in the pain after one year.
Lead study author Julie Fritz, associate dean for research at the College of Health at the University of Utah said “There are no quick fixes or `magic bullets’ for treating back pain.
“The take-home message for patients is that physical therapy may help somewhat in promoting a more rapid return to function following an episode of low back pain.”