Clin Rehabil: Does mechanical traction improve the symptoms of low back pain in patients with disc protrusion?

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of traction in improving low back pain, functional results, and intervertebral disc morphology in patients with intervertebral disc protrusion.
researchers searched the PubMed, Scopus, Embase and Cochrane library databases until July 2019.
included randomized controlled trials (1) involving adult patients with lumbar disc protrusion-related low back pain confirmed by magnetic resonance imaging or computer tomography, (2) comparing lumbar traction with false traction or not traction, and (3) providing quantitative measurements of pain and function before and after intervention.
use the Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) scale and The Cochrane Bias Risk Assessment to assess the quality of methodology.
included seven articles involving 403 participants for quantitative analysis based on the excerpts of titles, abstracts and full-text reviews.
results showed that the participants in the traction group had significantly greater pain and function improvement in the short term than the control group, with the standard average difference sharply at 0.44 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.11-0.77) and 0.42 (95% CI:0.08-0.76), respectively.
the standard average difference is not significant, does not support the long-term effects on pain and function, nor does it support the effects on the protrusion size of the intervertebral disc.
, the results show that lumbar traction showed significantly more pain relief and improved function in the short term than false traction or non-traction, but not in the long term.
there is not enough evidence to support the effect of lumbar traction on reducing the protrusion size of the disc.
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