Efficacy of Combining Mulligan's Spinal Mobilization With Leg Movement Technique and Mechanical Lumbar Traction in Patients With Lumbar Radiculopathy: A Randomized Controlled Trial

What this Trial Is About

Lumbar radiculopathy, often caused by disc herniation, leads to significant pain, disability, and reduced quality of life. This trial evaluates whether combining Spinal Mobilization with Leg Movement (SMWLM) and mechanical lumbar traction, both alongside conventional physiotherapy, provides better pain relief, functional improvement, and hip range of motion than SMWLM with conventional therapy alone. The study focuses on adults aged 20 to 50 years with unilateral L4-L5 or L5-S1 radiculopathy confirmed by MRI and clinical tests. Participants are randomly assigned to one of two groups: the experimental group receives SMWLM, intermittent mechanical lumbar traction at 50% body weight, and conventional therapy, while the control group receives SMWLM and conventional therapy without traction. Treatments are delivered over four weeks with sessions three times weekly for the first two weeks and twice weekly thereafter. SMWLM involves manual spinal mobilization with active pain-free leg movements, mechanical traction is applied intermittently for 15 minutes per session, and conventional therapy includes hot packs, electrical nerve stimulation, and supervised exercises. During the study, participants undergo assessments of pain intensity, functional disability, and hip range of motion at baseline, week 2, and week 4. Researchers use standardized scales and measurements to evaluate outcomes and analyze differences between groups. The trial includes detailed monitoring of treatment effects and participant responses over the four-week intervention period.

Efficacy of Combining Mulligan Spinal Mobilization With Leg Movement and Mechanical Lumbar Traction in Lumbar Radiculopathy