Introduction: Disc herniation is one of the most common degenerative disorders affecting the lumbar spine. It is characterized by back and leg pain. In the case of nerve root compression, paresthesia and neurologic deficits also occur. Conservative methods are the first-choice treatment. If these methods are unsuccessful, then surgical treatment is needed. Although, there is still no consensus on the most appropriate postoperative rehabilitation protocol, therapeutic exercises seem to have an important role in faster recovery after lumbar discectomy. Purpose: To review and compare therapeutic exercise programs and their effects on patients after lumbar discectomy. Methods: The literature search was completed in the PubMed database with a selected combination of keywords. Randomized controlled trials in the English language with free full access were included. Results: Seven studies were relevant for our review. Only subjects after first single-level lumbar discectomy without spine co-morbidities and without other systemic health issues were included. The protocols and parameters of exercise programs differed between studies. Dynamic lumbar stabilization exercise program or its combination with the home-based exercise program proved to be more effective compared to the home-based exercise program alone or groups without intervention. The combination of a home-based exercise program with a clinic-based exercise program did not show any better results compared to a home-based exercise program. No statistically significant differences were found neither between the behavioral graded activity group and the usual care group nor between the early exercise program group and the group without intervention. In the early functional exercises group, a statistically significant higher quality of life was observed after six months compared to the routine functional exercises group. Discussion and conclusion: Exercise programs had positive effects on pain, disability, quality of life, depression and kinesiophobia. We have concluded that dynamic lumbar stabilization exercises are an important element of exercise programs, because exercise programs, which included stabilization exercises, proved to be more effective compared to exercise programs without them. As the studies are heterogenous, we cannot make any conclusions about the most effective exercise programs neither about the optimal parameters.
|