Weakness of the “inner core” muscles, such as transverse abdominis and multifidus, could be one mechanism that contributes to back pain.
A new study examined the muscle activation patterns of 48 subjects as they lifted objects off of the floor. Those subjects who had a history of low back pain exhibited increased activity of the external obliques and decreased activity of the transverse abdominus and multifidus compared to the pain-free subjects.
Conclusions
It has long been theorized that if the smaller, “inner core” muscles become underactive, the larger, “outer” core muscles will become overactive in order to compensate. This study provides empirical evidence that this may indeed be the case and could be a major contributor to low back pain. I believe there is sufficient evidence that strengthening the “inner core” muscles can often be a useful treatment for helping patients with low back pain.
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