Research reported in the Annals of Internal Medicine last week concluded that massage therapy helps ease chronic low back pain and improves functioning. In the study 400 subjects in the Group Health Cooperative who had non-specific low back pain for at least 3 months were randomly assigned to one of three treatment groups. These were structural massage, relaxation massage or usual care (what they would have received routinely that was usually medications). The massage groups were given an hour long massage weekly for 10 weeks.
After 10 weeks , over 1/3 of the subjects who received either type of massage said their back pain was better or gone. This compared to 1 in 25 of the controls who reported their back pain was better or gone. In addition, at ten weeks nearly twice as many massage patients as the controls on usual treatment reported functioning significantly better than at the beginning of the treatment program. They reported fewer days in bed, were more active, and used fewer anti-inflammatory medications than the group of usual care.

According to new guidelines published in the December, 2009 issue of Neurology transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation (TENS) which is used widely for pain management is probably ineffective for chronic low back pain and is,thus, not recommended for low back pain that has persisted for 3 months or longer(chronic). These guidelines are a result of research studies reviewed in which all but one excluded people with known caused of low back pain. The results of the research reviewed showed that TENS did not ease chronic low back pain resulting from causes such as multiple sclerosis, a pinched nerve, scoliosis (severe curvature of the spine), obesity, spondylolisthesis ( severe displacement of a backbone), or had no known cause. The author of the new guidelines, Dr Richard Dubinsky, a researcher at Kansas University Medical Center said there is no benefit for people using TENS for chronic back pain.

In a study published in Lancet 26 February 2010 researchers reported that a type of psychotherapy known as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) significantly improves subacute and chronic back pain both short term and for up to 1 year compared to medical advice alone. Seven hundred patients with low back pain were in the study and 468 were treated with up to 6 sessions of group cognitive behavioral therapy and 233 received a 15 minute session of medical management advice that included information on staying active and the appropriate use of pain medications. After 12 months, 59% of those in the cognitive behavioral group reported recovery from their low back pain compared to 31% in the other group. In addition, 65% of those in the CBT group reported satisfaction with their treatment compared to 28% in the other group. The researchers concluded that CBT is a cost effective treatment for low back pin when compared to the cost of chiropractic care, and acupuncture.