MED-X Therapy Research

Here are links to various scientific and medical research papers on Med-X back and neck therapy studies.

Orthopedics, October 1995. The Clinical Effects of Intensive Specific Exercise on Chronic Low Back Pain: A Controlled Study of 895 Consecutive Patients With 1-Year Follow Up. This study reports that of the 895 patients, 76% had good or excellent results. Patients with either radicular or referred leg pain responded just as well as patients with isolated low back pain. Prior to this study, these patients had seen an average of three physicians and had failed six different treatment options, including chiropractic, epidural injections, facet injections, ultrasound, traction, medication, and electrical stimulation. Patients completing the program had dramatically less (67%) medical re-utilization in the year after than a comparable control group. Click here to read this study.

Archives of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, January 1999. Can Spinal Surgery be Prevented by Aggressive Strengthening Exercise? A Prospective Study of Cervical and Lumbar Patients. Forty-six of sixty participants completed the program. At an average of sixteen months after completion, only three required surgery after completing the program. In other words, patients who were informed they required back or neck surgery had a 92% chance of avoiding surgery with aggressive spinal strengthening on the Med-X Medical Machines. Click here to read this study.

Spine, November 1999. Restorative Exercise for Clinical Low Back Pain A combined study between Physicians Neck and Back Clinic and the University of California at San Diego included data on 400 individuals with chronic back pain. Patients were evaluated at initiation of treatment, at discharge, and 1 year after discharge. Health care re-utilization was dramatically lowered at both clinics to almost identical levels, thus validating the results of each. In the year after completion of treatment, only 12% of patients needed to re-enter the health care system for spinal problems. Click here to read this study.

The American Journal of Sports Medicine, Number 6, 1991. Quantitative Assessment and Training of Isometric Cervical Extension Strength. Because the cervical muscles must support the weight of the head, head and neck pain often originate as a result of muscular weakness. Although strengthening the neck may help prevent pain and injury, effective training programs for the cervical muscles have not been established. Accurate assessment of cervical extension strength requires stabilization of the torso to isolate the cervical extensor muscles and minimize the contribution from the torso and upper extremities, measurement through a full range of motion, correction for the influence of head weight during testing, and standardization of the testing position and procedures. The study showed that repeated measures of isometric cervical extension strength are highly reliable and can be used for the quantification of isometric cervical extension strength through a 126 degree range of motion. It also showed that training the cervical extensors 1 day per week can significantly increase isometric cervical extension strength through most of the range of motion. Click here to read this study.

Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, Vol. 31, 1999. Low Back Strengthening for the Prevention and Treatment of Low Back Pain. Study relates how isolated lumbar extension exercise with the pelvis stabilized using specialized equipment elicits the most favorable improvements in low back strength muscle cross-sectional area and vertebral bone mineral density. Improvements occurred independent of diagnosis, are long-lasting, and appear to result in less re-utilization of the health care system than other more passive treatments. Click here to read this study.

Spine, Number 68, 1992. Changes in Isometric Strength and Range of Motion of the Isolated Cervical Spine After Eight Weeks of Clinical Rehabilitation. This study was one of the first to objectively measure changes in strength and range of motion in patients with non-spinal cord injuries of the cervical spine. Significant gains were seen in strength as well as range of motion and perceived pain was significantly reduced. This study showed that testing and training of the isolated cervical spine is a safe and viable method of clinical assessment and treatment of a varity of cervical spine disorders. Click here to read this study.

The American Journal of Sports Medicine, Number 5, 1989. Effects of Resistance Training on Lumbar Extension Strength. This study demonstrates that healthy normal individuals show a significant increase in lumbar extension strength when these muscles are effectively isolated and trained. The magnitude of strength gained over the 10 week period is much greater than strength increases found with the average muscle group within the same period, and indicates that the lumbar extensor muscles were in a deconditioned state prior to training. In addition, 10 of the 15 subjects that trained had reported using the Nautilus low back machine on a regular basis prior to the study period. This supports the concept that commercially-available "low back" machines do not isolate the lumbar muscles and that the lumbar extensor muscles must be effectively isolated through pelvic stabilization in order to elicit a training response from progressive resistance exercise. Click here to read this study.

Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Vol.75, 1999. Pelvic Stabilization During Resistance Training: Its Effect on the Development of Lumbar Extension Strength. Study shows how the "No stabilization" and the "stabilization" groups showed significant and similar increases in the weight load for training. However, the post-training isometric torque values describing isolated lumbar extension strength improved only for the "stabilization" group. Therefore, pelvic stabilization is required to effectively train the lumbar extensor muscles. The increased load for the "no stabilization" group is attributed to increases in strength of the hamstring and buttock muscles. Click here to read this study.