The relationship between physical capacity and fear avoidance beliefs in patients with chronic low back pain.
Juhwan Lee, Shinjun Park
PMID 29184274WHAT IT FOUND
In men with chronic low back pain, higher leg strength and cardiopulmonary endurance linked to lower fear of physical activity.
Abdominal endurance linked to lower fear about work. However, this cross-sectional study cannot prove that fitness changes fear.
Key findings
01Leg strength and abdominal muscle endurance were negatively correlated with fear avoidance beliefs about work.
02Hand grip force, leg strength, and cardiopulmonary endurance were negatively correlated with fear avoidance beliefs about physical activity.
03Abdominal muscle endurance predicted fear avoidance about work, while leg strength and cardiopulmonary endurance predicted fear avoidance about physical activity.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The study is cross-sectional, so it cannot determine if low physical capacity causes fear avoidance or if fear avoidance leads to deconditioning. The sample consisted entirely of young male university students, so results may not apply to older adults, women, or other populations. Participants were excluded if they experienced pain during testing, which may bias the sample toward those with higher functional tolerance. The study did not include a control group of people without chronic low back pain for comparison.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that improving physical capacity will reduce fear avoidance beliefs. This study only shows an association in young men; it does not prove that increasing strength or endurance causes fear to decrease.