[Influence of Peridural Infiltration Therapy on Postural Control in Chronic Pain of the Lower Lumbar Spine - A Prospective Clinical Study].

Background: Postural control, balance stability, is reduced in patients with chronic low back pain, due to pain. Epidural injection therapy (EI) is an established treatment of low back pain. The objective of our study was to investigate whether EI-induced pain relief also leads to improvement in postural control, as detected by computerised dynamic posturography (CDP). Patients and Methods: In a prospective study, 32 patients underwent CDP during and after the EI series of three injections. The main objective was to measure changes in overall stability index (OSI) in a pre- and post-intervention comparison. Results: The pain, measured by the Visual Analog Scale (VAS), decreased by 62.8 %, from 4.3 ± 2.5 points to 1.6 ± 1.9 points (p < 0.001). Likewise, the OSI improved by 21.6 %, from 3.7 ± 1.7° to 2.9 ± 1.4° (day 5) (p = 0.019). Conclusion: Pain relief induced by EI results in improved postural control, which is of importance for supportive physiotherapy and rehabilitation.