Effectiveness of Neural Mobilization in the Management of Sciatica

The study was done to find out whether nerve mobilization techniques enhance patient outcomes in the management of sciatica when added to the standard care. A total of 30 patients, both male and female with a primary diagnosis of sciatica were recruited from the outpatient physical therapy department of G.B. Pant Neurology Hospital, New Delhi. Pre-test, post-test experimental design was used. After measuring the baseline pain (NPRS) and functional status (SF-12) scores, one group was treated with Nerve Mobilization along with conventional physical therapy while the other group was treated with conventional physical therapy alone. At discharge the patient’s scores in both the groups were reassessed. Non-parametric tests were used to compare the mean statistical difference between the groups. Within group analysis was done using Wilcoxon signed ranks test and between groups analysis was done using Mann Whitney U Test. The results showed that there was significant difference in pain and functional status scores as indicated by the significance p > 0:05 obtained in their respective p values. The study results showed that neural mobilization techniques when added to standard care enhance patient outcomes in sciatica in comparison to conventional physical therapy alone.