Abstract: OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to compare myofascial release (MFR) treatment and massage therapy for patients with nonspecific low back pain (NSLBP). METHODOLOGY: Three groups of 75 young females with NSLBP were created: group A received MFR together with conventional exercise, Group B received massage treatment along with conventional exercise, and Group C received conventional exercise alone. Pain severity as measured by the Visual Analog Scale and the functional status as measured by the Modified Oswestry Low Back Pain Disability Questionnaire (MOLBPDQ) was used to compare the effectiveness of the treatment before and after the 6-week intervention. RESULTS AND ANALYSIS: Before and after the intervention, there were notable variations in both groups’ Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and MOLBPDQ ( P < 0.001). Comparing Group A to the other two groups, the statistical analysis showed that Group A had significantly improved both the VAS and the MOLBPDQ. CONCLUSION: Based on the results obtained, group a showed better and statistically significant result from pre- to posttest than the other two groups in reducing pain and improving functional status on NSLBP in females at the end of the 6-week intervention period. This study concluded that MFR is the most effective intervention for NSLBP as it reduces pain and improves functional status rather than massage and conventional exercise. Hence, MFR technique can be recommended for improving NSLBP conditions.
Sahoo et al. (Tue,) studied this question.