Effect of Shockwave Therapy on Postmenopausal Sacroiliac Joint Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

Background: Sacroiliac joint pain is a common complaint among women and old-aged people, affecting their life quality. Objective: To examine the effect of shockwave therapy on postmenopausal sacroiliac joint pain. Subjects and Methods: Thirty postmenopausal women with sacroiliac joint pain were randomly chosen and divided into 2 groups of equal number. Group (A) received muscle energy technique for 8 weeks, whereas group (B) received the same muscle energy technique in addition to shockwave therapy for 8 weeks. The outcome measures were the mean values of pressure pain thresholds (PPT) at five chosen points in the sacroiliac joint region to assess pain sensitivity, visual analog scale (VAS) to evaluate pain intensity, and Oswestry disability index (ODI) to evaluate the functional disability. All of them were evaluated before and after treatment. Results: A comparison of the two groups after treatment showed statistically significant increases in the mean values of PPT at the five chosen points (p<0.05), as well as significant reductions in the scores of VAS and ODI (p<0.05) in favor of group (B). Conclusion: Shockwave is effective in treating postmenopausal sacroiliac joint pain through decreasing pain sensitivity and intensity, as well as improving functional ability.