BACKGROUND Chronic non-specific low back pain (LBP) causes more disability than any other medical condition worldwide. Electrical muscle stimulation in combination with heat (EMS/H) for management of LBP has yet not been properly studied. Our hypothesis was that EMS/H provides better pain relief and improves subjective and objective data compared to standard treatment. METHODS Between 2015 and 2017, we conducted a 6 week randomized, double-blind, stratified, placebo controlled clinical trial, comparing two different forms of EMS/H with placebo treatment with a follow-up 12 weeks after randomization. Patients >18 years with LBP for >6 months and a pain intensity of numerical rating scale (NRS) ≥4/10 were enrolled. RESULTS A total of 100 patients were recruited. Patients were representative of a LBP population with moderate to severe pain (NRS 5.7/10). After 18 treatments, we found a statistically significant pain reduction, which was also observed at the 12 week follow-up. CONCLUSION EMS/H is an effective and safe method for managing LBP. A clinically relevant and persisting pain reduction, a stable decrease in self-perceived disability, an improvement in both mood and affective characterization as well as sensory characterization of pain, muscle strength and endurance may have a significant impact on the management of LBP.

中文翻译：

---

肌肉电刺激联合热疗治疗慢性非特异性背痛患者

背景 慢性非特异性腰痛 (LBP) 导致的残疾比世界范围内的任何其他疾病都多。肌肉电刺激与热 (EMS/H) 相结合用于管理 LBP 尚未得到适当研究。我们的假设是，与标准治疗相比，EMS/H 可以更好地缓解疼痛并改善主观和客观数据。方法 在 2015 年至 2017 年期间，我们进行了一项为期 6 周的随机、双盲、分层、安慰剂对照临床试验，比较了两种不同形式的 EMS/H 与安慰剂治疗，并在随机化后 12 周进行了随访。入组患者 > 18 岁，LBP 时间 > 6 个月，疼痛强度数值评定量表 (NRS) ≥ 4 / 10。结果 共招募了 100 名患者。患者代表具有中度至重度疼痛 (NRS 5.7 / 10) 的 LBP 人群。18 次治疗后，我们发现疼痛明显减轻，这在 12 周的随访中也观察到。结论 EMS / H 是管理 LBP 的有效且安全的方法。临床相关和持续的疼痛减轻、自我感知残疾的稳定减少、情绪和情感特征以及疼痛、肌肉力量和耐力的感官特征的改善可能对 LBP 的管理产生重大影响。