Introduction
Back pain (BP) is a leading cause of years lived with disability [1], with an estimated 70-85 percent of the population to experience BP at some point in their lives [2]. In North America, disability from BP increased by 14 times the rate of population growth between the years 1950 and 1980 [2]. When measuring overall disease burden, these trends have also occurred on a global scale in all continents, but significantly so in areas such as South Asia, East Asia, North Africa, and the Middle East. Poor education about workplace ergonomic and a lack of effective medical management is thought to be among the main causes of the increase in overall burden [1].
The biggest challenge in treating back pain is determining the actual development of the injury. Spine stability is based on three components: (1) vertebrae and facet joint, ligament, and intervertebral disks; (2) muscles and tendons surrounding the spine; (3) neural systems that control coordinate the active subsystem [3]. A disruption in any one of these three components leads to instability of the spine and injury and pain [3]. Current evidence based treatment modalities focus on a combination of pain medications, exercise, and psychological interventions. Although a minority of patients with chronic BP may qualify for surgery, serious side effects and high costs are an impediment.
A factor in low back pain may be obesity resulting in stress on the musculoskeletal system. As a result bariatric surgery is conducted in some cases with positive results [4]. However, there is also a known effect on some patients that a gastrectomy is followed by increasing low back pain resulting from the change in intra-abdominal pressure, spinal loading, and a decrease in stability of the spine [5].
Alternative treatment modes are, consequently, being explored. One novel treatment being used successfully for many patients is the KKT Treatment (Khan Kinetic Treatment). This non-invasive approach provides orthopaedic spinal treatment with focused sound waves. The KKT device delivers digitally derived personalized low frequency sound waves within the audible range (50-100 Hz) focused through a stylus onto particular locations on the spine. This sound wave therapy is a safe therapy that has demonstrated the ability to decrease pain, reduce anxiety, reduce the symptoms of illness, and generally promote health in many patients [6]. Research has shown that the musculoskeletal effects of the novel sound wave therapy result in pain reduction and spinal alignment but also include increased mRNA expression of key proteins for spinal health and a cellular environment conducive to ligament repair [6-9].
Low back pain is a major problem that increases patients’ suffering and increases health care costs. Treatment for low back pain must control pain perception, improve alignment of the spine, and stimulate the healing of ligamentous structures. Research into the sound wave therapy has theorized that the KKT treatment addresses these crucial requirements of effective back treatment by: (1) stimulating intervertebral discs biosynthesis; (2) Correcting abnormal intervertebral joint rotation (mean axis of rotation, MAR); (3) Gating pain transmission by activating key circuitry in the spinal cord; (4) Minimizing asymmetrical loads on the spine by relaxing paraspinal muscles; and (5) increasing coordination of muscle groups that play a critical role in stabilization of the spine [8,9]. It is very important to improve our management approach of low back pain to help reduce the risk and costs of such pain. The following case report of an adult patient who presented with low back pain illustrates the effect of the KKT treatment.