Low Back Disorders

Over the past decade considerable emphasis has been placed on understanding the psycho-social aspects of low back pain. Prior to this great emphasis had been placed on pathological and mechanical factors associated with the development of low back pain. The shift away from this mechanical approach despite a growing body of valid scientific evidence in support of this approach has possibly led to an over emphasis of the psycho-social aspects of low back pain. In this text McGill attempts to redress some of this imbalance by providing an update and a very compelling argument to re-focus our attention toward the mechanical aspects of low back pain and the resultant disability. Dr McGill is a biomechanist and an internationally recognised lecturer and expert in spine function, injury prevention and rehabilitation. He has widely published more that two hundred scientific publications that address lumbar spine function and low back injury mechanism. Although not a practising clinician as such, he provides a very practical approach to the rehabilitation of low back injuries based on the biomechanical principles arrived at following years of work in the lab. He is a consultant to industry and has regular contact with patients. The book is a very practical approach to the rehabilitation of patients with low back pain and is anything but a dry read. The book is divided into three sections with the first section being the scientific foundation on which the rehabilitation principles are based. In this section of the book he addresses issues associated with low back pain and rehabilitation and outlines the extrapolation of the in-vivo lab work and its application to clinical practice. He also outlines the epidemiological studies on low back disorders and draws together the biomechanical, psycho-social and personal variables that impact upon this condition. This chapter is followed by a very practical review of the functional anatomy of the lumbar spine with a significant clinical emphasis. The next chapter deals with normal and injury mechanics of the lumbar spine and outlines the various potential mechanisms of injury associated with loads placed upon the spine during various activities. This chapter provides a very clear overview of the current knowledge of lumbar spine biomechanics. It is done in a very readable fashion however. The final chapter in Section One addresses the issue of lumbar spine stability and outlines some of the commonly held myths regarding spinal stability and helps to separate …