محمد حسین موقر - Dept. of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, Ferdowsi University, Mashhad, Iran
مهرداد فتحی - Dept. of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, Ferdowsi University, Mashhad, Iran
مجید زندی - Dept. of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, Ferdowsi University, Mashhad, Iran

Background and Objective: Patients with lower back pain prefer to get treated by noninvasive techniques. The goal of this study was to examine the impact of foot reflexology on reducing lower back pain caused by discopathy. Materials and Methods: This semi-empirical study was conducted on ۳۰ men suffering from back pain diagnosed with discopathy with a mean age of ۳۰ ±۵ years and BMI scores of ۱۸-۲۵. The subjects were randomly divided into two groups of ۱۵ and classified as test and control. The pain intensity was measured both prior to and after the procedure using VAS. The reflexology protocol during fifteen ۳۰-minute sessions (one every other day for a month) was performed on the test subjects. During this period, the control group received no treatment. Data was analyzed by descriptive and inferential statistics, especially paired t-test, using the SPSS software. Results: Our findings show a significant effectiveness of foot reflexology on the reduction of lower back pain in discopathy (P< ۰.۰۵) and also indicate a significant difference between the mean pain intensities between the test and control groups before and after the procedure (P< ۰.۰۵). Conclusion: Foot reflexology appears to be an effective technique for reducing the lower back pain caused by discopathy.

Keywords: Foot reflexology, Low back pain, Discopathy