14.10.3 Endorphinic treatment of low back pain
Chronically contractured lumbar paravertebral muscles are often the source of pain felt by patients with
lumbago. Although a physiotherapist must naturally find the cause of the pain and treat it accordingly,
treatment of these chronic contractions using the Low back pain programme brings about fast, significant
pain relief. In the lumbar region, the stimulation currents required to obtain visible (or at least palpable)
muscle twitches are generally high and can be dicult to tolerate by some patients. This is why it is
generally recommended to combine TENS treatment with the Low back pain programme to make
treatment more comfortable for the patient.
This treatment should be continued for at least ten sessions in order to restore the capillary network,
which is usually atrophic in chronically contractured muscles.
14.10.3.1 Protocol
Low back pain + TENS : 10 to 12 sessions
The Low back pain programme is designed to provide endorphinic stimulation on the first two channels
and TENS stimulation on the other two channels.
14.10.3.2 Treatment frequency
Three to five sessions per week for two to three weeks (10 to 12 sessions in total), a session should last at
least 20 minutes.
Ideally, it may be beneficial to carry out two successive stimulation sessions within the Low back pain
programme, ensuring a ten-minute rest period is taken between the two sessions to allow the stimulated
muscles to recover.
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