Comparison of Ipsilateral Versus Contralateral Lower Limb Neural Mobilization in Unilateral Lumbar Radiculopathy- A Randomized Clinical Trial

Abstract

Background: Neural tissue mobilization is a movement-based intervention aimed at restoring homeostasis in and around the nervous system. However, there are limited studies on the effects of contralateral lower extremity neural mobilization in lumbar radiculopathy.
Aim/Objective: To compare and evaluate the immediate effect of neural slider mobilization on contralateral versus ipsilateral lower extremity pain and hip range of motion (ROM) during straight leg raise (SLR) in unilateral lumbar radiculopathy.
Methods: Thirty-six individuals with subacute and chronic back pain during SLR, resulting from unilateral lumbar radiculopathy in the sciatic nerve and its branches, were randomized to two groups: ipsilateral and contralateral. They received a single session of neural slider mobilization in the ipsilateral and contralateral lower extremity, respectively. The numeric pain rating scale was used to measure pain, and for hip flexion ROM during straight leg raise digital goniometer was used for assessment.
Results: Pre- and post-treatment values showed a statistically significant difference within the groups in terms of pain (P=0.00001 for both ipsilateral and contralateral group). However, there was no significant difference between the groups (P=0.00001). For hip ROM during SLR, a significant difference was found within as well as between the groups (P=0.00088 for the ipsilateral group and P=0.3476 for the contralateral group; and between-group comparison P=0.00047).
Conclusions: Both the ipsilateral and contralateral slider neural mobilization technique was effective in reducing lower extremity pain. However, the ipsilateral neural mobilization technique was superior to the contralateral technique in reducing pain. Ipsilateral slider neural mobilization alone showed improvement in hip ROM during SLR.