Interferential therapy electrode placement technique in acute low back pain: A preliminary investigation

Objective: To determine the efficacy of interferential therapy (IFT) electr ode placement technique compared with a control treatment in subjects with acute low back pain (LBP). Design: Single-blind, randomized. controlled trial with a 3-month follow-up . Setting: Outpatient physiotherapy departments in hospital and university se ttings. Patients: A random sample of 60 eligible patients with back pain (28 men, 3 2 women) were recruited by general practitioners and self-referral for phys iotherapy treatment and randomly assigned to 1 of 3 groups. Interventions: (1) "IFT painful area" and The Back Book, (2) "IFT spinal ne rve" and The Back Book, and (3) "Control," The Back Book only. Standardized IFT stimulation parameters were used: carrier frequency 3.85kHz: 140Hz con stant: pulse duration 130 mus; 30 minutes' duration. Main Outcome Measures: Pain Rating Index, Roland-Morris Disability Question naire (RMDQ). and EuroQol were completed by subjects pretreatment, at disch arge, and 3-month follow-up. Results: All groups had significant improvements in all outcomes at follow- up. Subjects managed by IFT spinal nerve and The Bark Book displayed both a statistically significant (p = .030) and clinically meaningful reduction i n functional disability (RMDQ), compared with management via IFT painful ar ea and The Back Book combined or The Buck Book alone. Conclusions: The findings showed that IFT electrode placement technique aff ects LBP-specific functional disability, providing preliminary implications for future clinical studies.