THRUST AND NONTHRUST MANIPULATION FOR OLDER ADULTS WITH LOW BACK PAIN: AN EVALUATION OF PAIN AND DISABILITY

Objective: The purpose of the study was to compare the effects of thrust manipulation (TM) and non-TM (NTM) on a sample of older subjects with low back pain. Methods: This is a secondary data analysis of a randomized control trial. Forty-nine subjects aged 55 to 88 years participated in the trial, who received either a TM or NTM on at least 2 occasions during the course of care, and were extracted from the larger data set. The treatment program included a standardized home exercise program for the first 2 sessions, which could be modified by the therapist after those 2 sessions. Numeric pain rating scale and Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) were the outcomes for this study. Results: Multivariate analysis revealed no significant between-group differences for treatment group (P = .99) without group x time interaction (P = .90). Significant within-group changes were observed for both groups for ODI and numeric pain rating scale (P < .001); the average self-report of recovery was 78.0% (SD, 19.8%). Age stratification of the older subset revealed between-group differences in ODI change scores for the oldest subjects (>70 years) compared with 60 to 69 years (P = .02). Conclusions: This study showed that outcomes for both TM and NTM improved in older adults with low back pain.