Kinematic comparison between people with and without low back pain during functional activities

In clinical settings, examining the range of motion (ROM) of trunk rotation and functional tasks is commonly employed as part of musculoskeletal assessments to diagnose low back pain (LBP) cases. This study compared trunk kinematics during functional activities between individuals with and without non-specific LBP. A total of 45 LBP patients and 45 healthy participants were recruited for this research. The Xsens wearable motion capture system was utilized to record movements during axial trunk rotations and activities such as single-leg standing, walking, hurdle steps, squats, and box lifting. During functional tasks, individuals with LBP displayed larger trunk ROMs, except for rotation in the transverse plane (TP) during single-leg standing. Statistically significant differences were observed between the two groups in trunk extension-flexion in the frontal plane (FP) and TP, trunk bending in TP, trunk rotation in FP and TP, single-leg standing in the sagittal plane (SP), walking in SP and FP, hurdle step in TP, and squat in the FP plane (p < 0.05). Individuals with LBP exhibited smaller trunk ROMs during simple trunk rotation movements, whereas larger ROMs were observed during functional tests. These findings shed light on the particular alterations observed in trunk movement and function experienced by individuals with LB.