The Mézières Method as a Novel Treatment for Elite Spanish Second-Division Soccer League Players With Low Back Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the efficacy of 24 weeks of treatment with Mézières method in a Spanish elite second-division soccer team with low back pain (LBP), analyzing their state of back health, flexibility, pain, and steps speed. DESIGN: Double-blind randomized controlled trial. METHODS: A total of 20 players with LBP from the second soccer division league were allocated equally to the experimental and control groups (n = 10) as per selection criteria and participated in 2 different rehabilitation programs. The postural Mézières method was implemented in the experimental group, whereas the standard European treatment protocol for LBP was implemented in the control group. Both treatments had a twice weekly session of 40 minutes duration for 24 weeks consecutively with a follow-up in the fourth, 12th, and 24th weeks. RESULTS: Multivariate analysis of covariance with the baseline assessment as a covariance showed a significant difference between groups at the 12th and 24th weeks of the treatment for pain and back functionality. A relevant difference between the experimental and control groups was shown only at the 24th week of the treatment (P < .05) for back flexibility. A significant difference between groups was reported for the quality of life scale and steps speed at the 24th week of the treatment (P > .05). CONCLUSION: The Mézières method showed a positive effect in the elite soccer athletes with nonspecific chronic LBP and can be used as an alternative treatment.

The Effectiveness of the Mézières Method in Elite Rhythmic Gymnastics Athletes With Low Back Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

CONTEXT: One of the main reasons why athletes with a high physical condition suffer from low back pain disease is because they often participate in sports that involve disc compression movements during flexion, lifting loads, or torsion movement. OBJECTIVES: This study aims to examine the effectiveness of the postural treatment of the Mézières method on elite rhythmic gymnastics athletes with low back pain. DESIGN: Double-blind, randomized, controlled trial. SETTING: The sports hall of "Puente Tocinos," Murcia, Spain. PARTICIPANTS: Ninety gymnastics athletes were randomized into 2 parallel groups (intervention: n = 39; control: n = 51), of whom 98.9% were women (women = 89; man = 1). INTERVENTION: The Mézières method postural therapy was implemented. It lasted about 60 minutes in repeated sessions of 2 to 3 meetings per week by counting in overall 60 sessions during a 24-week period. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Visual analog scale of pain, sit and reach flexibility test, Runtastic (pedometer performance android application), Roland-Morris Questionnaire for the physical disability, and the Health Status Questionnaire were used. RESULTS: The univariate analysis of variance and independent sample t test revealed a significant improvement in the intervention group concerning the visual analog scale pain assessment scale (P < .05, ηp2=.625), and, also, the between-groups effect size was high during the 24 sessions of treatment (d > 0.8) compared with the control one. The same situation persists even for Roland-Morris Questionnaire (P < .05, ηp2=.802), physical score (P < .05, ηp2=.613), mental score (P < .05, ηp2=.736), sit and reach flexibility test (P < .05, ηp2=.666), and Runtastic performance (P < .05, ηp2=.790), where the between-groups effect size was high during the 24 sessions of treatment (d > 0.8). CONCLUSION: The Mézières method treatment performed on athletes with low back pain has caused positive effects on all the outcomes analyzed compared with the ones of control group.