Background: Because training of the lumbar muscles is a commonly recommended intervention in low back pain (LBP), it is important to clarify whether lumbar muscle atrophy is related to LBP. Fat infiltration seems to be a late stage of muscular degeneration, and can be measured in a noninvasive manner using magnetic resonance imaging. The purpose of this study was to investigate if fat infiltration in the lumbar multifidus muscles (LMM) is associated with LBP in adults and adolescents.

Most degenerative disc "abnormalities" were moderately associated with LBP. The strongest associations were noted for Modic changes and anterolisthesis. Further studies are needed to define clinical relevance.

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It is believed that disc degeneration (DD) is, in general, only mildly associated with low back pain (LBP). MRI-identified Modic changes (MC), probably a late stage of DD, are relatively strongly associated with LBP but it is not known if people with MC also have a specific clinical profile. The purpose of this study was to investigate if the clinical findings differ in people with Modic changes (MC) as compared to those with only degenerative disc findings or none at all. In a population-based sample of 412 40-year-old Danes, information was collected independently with MRI, questionnaires and clinical examination. Three subgroups of people were created: those with both DD and MC, those with only DD, and those with neither DD nor MC. The clinical pattern was investigated for each subgroup in order to test the assumption that the clinical picture differs in the three groups. It was expected that people with both DD and MC would have a more pronounced clinical profile than those with only DD who, in turn, would differ from those with neither of these two MRI findings. Our findings were generally in concordance with our expectations. MC constitutes the crucial element in the degenerative process around the disc in relation to LBP, history, and clinical findings. People with DD and no MC only vaguely differ from those without. People with LBP and MC may deserve to be diagnosed as having specific LBP.

In children, degenerative disc findings are relatively common, and some are associated with LBP. There appears to be a gender difference. Disc protrusions, endplate changes, and anterolisthesis in the lumbar spine were strongly associated with seeking care for LBP.

No abstract

There was no clinical difference between the three treatments. All three treatment interventions demonstrated meaningful improvement in all primary effect parameters. Improvements were maintained at 4- and 12-month follow-up. However, whether this was a result of the treatments or simply a result of time is unknown. Future studies will be necessary to delineate ideal treatment strategies.

Subjective feelings of fatigue were assessed before operation and 10, 20 and 30 days after uncomplicated elective abdominal surgery in 16 otherwise healthy patients, using a constructed fatigue scale model. In addition, all patients had an orthostatic stress test performed at the same times. Six of the patients also underwent a bicycle ergometer test measuring heart rate and oxygen consumption. Subjective feelings of fatigue were increased (P less than 0.01) at all three postoperative observations, and only 5 of 16 patients returned to their preoperative level. The increased subjective feeling of fatigue correlated positively (RS = 0.53, P less than 0.001) with the increased pulse rate seen during orthostatic stress after operation. Heart rate was about 5 per cent higher (n.s.) after operation when bicycling at the same work loads, while oxygen consumption decreased by about 2 per cent (P less than 0.01) at all three postoperative bicycle tests. It is concluded that even electric uncomplicated abdominal surgery is followed by a pronounced feeling of fatigue, which may persist 1 month after surgery in about one-third of patients. The fatigue scale model seems applicable for future studies on the pathogenesis and treatment of the postoperative fatigue syndrome.