INTEGRATION OF YOGA IN A PHYSIOTHERAPY TREATMENT FOR THE LOWER BACK PAIN

The primary purpose of this report is to conduct a systematic review of existing research on the effects of yoga on lower back pain. Electronic databases from PubMed, CINAHL, Scholarworks, JSTOR, and Google Scholar were the primary source of the search with the keyword ‘yoga and lower back pain’. Search results were filtered between recent research from 2020 to 2021. A total of 24 relevant studies were identified initially; of those, ten were excluded based on the abstract and the title, irrelevant to this report. The remaining 14 studies were thoroughly evaluated after carefully reviewing the full text. Based on inclusion and exclusion criteria, seven studies were excluded. Seven of the studies were considered, including integration of yoga in physiotherapy treatment for lower back pain. Three studies were focused and reviewed, which resembled the most with the search criteria. The report is primarily a literature review and secondarily analysis of qualitative data collected during the more extensive multi-method studies in recent years by other researchers. According to Lawrence RC, 1998 and Hides et al. 2001, an estimated 70% of the population will experience some lower back pain with 85% reoccurrence in their lifetime. Lower back pain is a common and often disabling musculoskeletal condition (Lawrence RC et al 1998 and Hides JA et al 2001). Recent studies suggest that physiotherapists integrating yoga in their treatment are widely practiced. The number of physiotherapists including yoga in their treatment plan for lower back pain is rising (Wims and York, 2017). Physiotherapists use yoga as part of the treatment for individuals with various health conditions, including lower back pain, to improve clients’ physical and mental health. Findings support the functional outcome after the client’s yoga participation in physiotherapy treatment for lower back pain. Physiotherapist assessment and documentation could contribute to evidence-based literature on why physiotherapists use yoga for lower back pain. In conclusion, integrating yoga can be an effective therapy, significantly reducing lower back pain. However, further research studies on larger sample size and what kind of yoga have higher efficiency in relieving lower back pain would be beneficial