Comparison of mat and Swiss ball based Pilates exercise in chronic nonspecific low back pain patients

Abstract

Objective: To compare the effect of mat and Swiss ball based Pilates exercise in chronic nonspecific low back pain patients. Design: Prospective comparative study Setting: Department of musculoskeletal department, Pravara Rural Hospital, Loni. Method: 30 subjects were selected for the study aged between 20-40 years and randomly divided into two equal groups of 15 each. The Group ‘A’ subjects were asked to perform Pilates exercise on mat and Group ‘B’ performed similar exercise on Swiss ball. Both the groups were asked to perform 4 types of Pilates exercise for 3 weeks starting with 3 repetitions progressing to 9 repetitions by the end of third week. The core strength was assessed by using ITO test and the pain and disability by using modified Oswestry Pain and Disability Index (MODI). Result: There was a significant difference seen on comparison between the individual pre-post interventional statistics of both the groups, nevertheless, when comparison was made between the post results of the two interventions, there was no significant difference. Conclusion: The current study concludes that the mat and Swiss ball based Pilates exercises are equally beneficial in chronic nonspecific low back pain patients.