Effects of circuit resistance training on the quality of life and disability of women with low back pain

Introduction
Back pain is a serious social problem which frequently affects women. So far, the effectiveness and safety of physical activities recommended to them have not been confirmed scientifically. The aim of the work was to determine the influence of circuit resistance training on the quality of life and disability of women with back pain.

Material and methods
The study included 25 women (mean age 52.81 ± 13.83 years) with back pain in the course of degenerative changes in the lumbar spine. Circuit resistance training was done on the machines with hydraulic resistance. Prior to the training, each participant was diagnosed on the basis of the McKenzie functional assessment. The quality of life was evaluated with the use of SF-36 survey, while pain intensity was assessed with visual analogue scale (VAS). The level of disability was examined with Roland-Morris disability questionnaire (RMDQ). The examinations were repeated after a three-month period of training and compared with a control group including 31 women (mean age 43.43 ± 14.64 years) who did not take up any physical activity in this period.

Results
In the research group, 73.68% of the subjects improved their quality of life assessed with SF-36 survey, mainly in the category of physical functioning (p=0.006). Moreover, their disability decreased significantly (p=0.01) and pain subsided (p=0.003) compared to the control group.

Conclusions
Circuit resistance training decreased low back pain, reduced disability and improved the quality of life of the subjects. This type of training may be recommended to individuals with non-specific low back pain.