Journal Club: Everyday Forces

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One of the big ways physical therapists have an impact on patients in the clinic and in the community is through careful and thoughtful patient education. I try to make sure patient education centers on explaining concepts through relatable analogies and applicable studies. I have found that if you can cite and explain applicable studies in an accessible way, you can have a very positive impact. Today, I am going to provide one of those “go to” studies, if you will, that provides great information and helps me help my patient connect the dots on low back pain.

Most everyone will deal with low back pain and it can appear for a variety of reasons but one of the most common reasons is repetitive loading. And there are some many daily activities that have high loads that can ultimately result in pain over time. Enter this Rholmann study.

Activities of Everyday Life with High Spinal Loads

So, Rholmann has published several studies regarding low back pain and force load but I have always appreciated this particular study because it centered on daily forces affecting the spine. This is a small sample size, but essentially they took patients and began to quantify daily force loads in an effort to better develop post-op spinal treatment and provide general understanding to force loads through the spine.

After all the data and numbers were crunched (the study design is fascinating to read but I’m going to provide the nuts and bolts) essentially, they found 10 daily activities that have very high force loads which are listed in the chart in the study (Make sure you check out that graph). Those were then compared to a baseline force of walking.

This is important because we can begin to educate patients about why proper lifting techniques are important. We can make patients aware of how often these force loads occur and how that can affect the tissue physiologically and lead to failure/pain if not balanced by healthy exercise. I also find it re-affirming that walking is not very forceful on the spine and is yet again proof that in chronic pain or other pain situations we need to encourage patients to walk.

I would highly encourage you to look through the charts and graphs in this study and begin to incorporate this information into your patient education to make it more impactful and relatable. I hope you find it as helpful as it has been for me and my patients.

Jason

***Check out my book "Rehab the World" written for Physical Therapists to encourage us in our workplace and prepare us to serve those around us. If you like, please leave a review and spread the word!!*** 

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