Effectiveness of a back care pillow as an adjuvant physical therapy for chronic non-specific low back pain treatment: a randomized controlled trial

[Purpose] The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of a back care pillow (BCP) on pain, lumbar range of motion (LROM) and functional disability of patients with chronic non-specific low back pain (LBP). [Subjects and Methods] Fifty-two subjects who were aged between 20–69 years old, who presented with LBP of more than 3 months duration with a numerical rating scale (NRS) value of at least 4 were randomly assigned to treatment (BCP) and control (CON) groups. Participants in each group received six sessions of the 30 minutes treatment for two weeks. The BCP group was asked to wear the BCP during the daytime during the study period. Pain, lumbar ROM and functional disability were assessed before and after the 2-week treatment, and at the end of a 12-week follow up. [Results] After the 2-week treatment and 12-week follow up, all outcomes had improved in both groups; the BCP group had maintained the decrease in pain intensity and improved lumbar ROM in the extension position after the 12-week follow up, and showed better improvements in all outcomes at 2 weeks and after the 12-week follow up. [Conclusion] BCP combined with physical therapy had better pain, lumbar ROM and functional disability outcomes than physical therapy alone.