A Comparative Study of Pelvic Traction and Bilateral Leg Traction in the Conservative Management of Low Backache

Abstract

Background: Low backache is the commonest complaint with which the patient presents to an Orthopaedic Surgeon. Nearly 80% of the population suffer from low backache at one or the other stage in their lifetime. The management of these patients includes bed rest, analgesics, back exercises, traction and at times even surgery. Dillane, Fry and Kalton reported that nearly 79% of men and 89% of women suffered from low backache at some point of time in their life. The exact cause of which was unknown. This amounts to significant loss of income for the nation because the productivity is lost due to absenteeism. Aim: The purpose of this study is to evaluate whether Pelvic traction or Bilateral leg traction is superior in the conservative management of low backache.Materials and Methods: We evaluated 93 patients with low backache due to various causes. Out of these, 44 patients were put on bilateral leg traction and the other 49 patients on pelvic traction. Patients between 20 to 70 years of age were included in the study. Their foot end was elevated while they were on traction. Pain severity was assessed based on the following pain severity scales: Body diagrams, Thermometer pain rating scale, Visual analogue scale (VAS), Mc Gill Pain questionnaire method, Numeric rating scale, Wong Baker faces pain rating scale. Results: The analysis of the data has showed that bilateral leg traction has got significant better pain relief as compared to pelvic traction, but there is no difference between bilateral leg traction and pelvic traction in regards to time duration taken for the pain relief.Conclusion: Bilateral leg traction provides significant pain relief as compared to pelvic traction.