Razi Journal of Medical Sciences

    Background & Aim: Low back pain and lordosis are among the most frequent complaints of pregnancy, and one of the methods to reduce them is physical exercise. The purpose of the present study is to evaluate the effect of exercise on low back pain severity and lordosis in pregnant women.

Patients and Method: A randomized clinical trial was performed on 30 pregnant women with a gestational age of 16 weeks who had low back pain.The patients were randomly assigned into  two groups. In the case group (n=15) exercise and in the control group (n=15) nothing was done. To find the severity of back pain, the pregnant women were asked to fill in Roland-Morris questionnaire once  at the beginning of the study and again in the 20th and 24th weeks of pregnancy. Lordosis was measured by a flexible ruler at the beginning of the study and again in the 20th and 24th weeks of pregnancy. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS v.11. Paired t-test and  Students' t-test were used to  compare the results. P value less than 0.05 was considered significant.

Results: In comparison with the control group, the case group showed a significant reduction in the severity of back pain 2 months after intervention (26.13± 2.41 VS 31.93 ±4.9, P=0.001), and the reduction in the intensity of back pain 2 months after intervention was less in the control group than the case group (-3.42± 0.44 VS 17.76± 0.936, P= 0.001). In both groups, lordosis was significantly increased (40.26± 7.1 VS 42.6±7.16, P=0.001 in the case group, and 39.63±5.21 VS 41.9±5.84, P=0.001 in the control group), but the rate of increase was higher in the control group.

Conclusion: Exercise may be a good method to reduce low back pain and lordosis in pregnant women.