Effects of a 4-Week Trunk Stabilization Exercise Program on Lower-Limb Muscle Activation during Gait and Functional Disability in University Students with Low Back Pain

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Background Prolonged sitting, low physical activity, and trunk muscle weakness in university students increase the risk of low back pain (LBP), which can alter gait and lower-limb muscle activation. Purpose To investigate the effects of a 4-week trunk stabilization exercise program on spatiotemporal gait parameters, lower-limb muscle activation, and functional disability in university students with LBP. Study design Single-group pre–post intervention study. Methods Twenty-seven university students with LBP performed 16 trunk stabilization exercises once daily for 40 minutes, 5 days per week, for 4 weeks. Gait was assessed using a pressure-sensing walkway to obtain stance phase, single-limb stance, and stride length. Surface electromyography recorded activation of six lower-limb muscles during gait and was normalized to maximum voluntary isometric contraction. Functional disability was evaluated using the Korean version of the Oswestry Disability Index (K-ODI). Pre–post differences were analyzed using repeated measures ANOVA. Results Stance phase duration significantly decreased, whereas single-limb stance and stride length significantly increased (p<.01). Soleus and biceps femoris activity increased (p<.01), while rectus femoris, tibialis anterior, and popliteus activity decreased (p<.05); gastrocnemius showed a non-significant increase. K-ODI scores decreased from 29.40±5.60 to 23.62±5.01 (p<.01). Conclusions A 4-week trunk stabilization program improved gait efficiency, reorganized lower-limb neuromuscular activation, and reduced functional disability in young adults with LBP. Trunk stabilization may be used as a practical, non-invasive intervention in university populations.