Effects of Core Stability Exercises and Cognitive Tasks on Chronic Non-specific Back Pain

Effects of Core Stability Exercises and Cognitive Tasks Compared to General Exercises and Cognitive Tasks on Chronic Non-specific Back Pain

This randomized control trial study aims to compare the effect of core stability exercises and cognitive tasks with general exercises and cognitive tasks on pain, disability, and postural control strategies of chronic non-specific low back pain patients. The main questions are:

1. Are core stability exercises and cognitive tasks more effective than general exercises and cognitive tasks in reducing the pain of chronic non-specific low back pain patients?
2. Are core stability exercises and cognitive tasks more effective than general exercises and cognitive tasks in reducing the disability of chronic non-specific low back pain patients?
3. Are core stability exercises and cognitive tasks more effective than general exercises and cognitive tasks in improving postural stability parameters of chronic non-specific low back pain patients?
4. Are core stability exercises and cognitive tasks more effective than general exercises and cognitive tasks in improving stabilogram diffusion analysis parameters of chronic non-specific low back pain patients? This study is designed to apply two exercise protocols on two groups of 17 people with non-specific back pain. Group A will receive core stability exercises along with cognitive tasks, and group B will receive general exercises along with cognitive tasks.

Patients will be aged between 18-50 years. All patients meeting the inclusion criteria will receive 16 training sessions (thrice a week). The primary outcome measure will be pain and disability. Secondary outcome measures will be postural control strategies (including postural control stability and stabilogram diffusion analysis), quality of life, fear of movement, and fear-avoidance beliefs that will be assessed before and after training sessions and at 3-month follow-up; only primary outcomes will be evaluated in each group.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Orthopedist-confirmed diagnosis of chronic nonspecific low back pain that has lasted at least three months since its onset.
• Pain score of 3 or more on a visual analog scale.
• Pain during quiet standing.
• Cognitive level above 24 based on mini-mental state examination (MMSE).

Exclusion Criteria:

• Radicular pain and any neurological signs.
• Uncorrected vision impairment.
• Hearing problems.
• Vestibular dysfunctions.
• Cognitive deficit.
• Previous spinal surgery.
• Severe deformity or injury to the lower extremities.