Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of the study participants*.
| Variable | Experimental group (N = 306) |
Control group (N = 102) |
|---|---|---|
| Sex: no. of patients (%) | ||
| Male (%) | 147 (48.0) | 53 (52.0) |
| Female (%) | 159 (52.0) | 49 (48.0) |
| Age (years) | 45.91 ± 10.73 | 43.58 ± 12.10 |
| Stage of the disease§: no. of patients (%) | ||
| Acute stage (0~14 days) | 109 (35.6) | 38 (37.3) |
| Subacute stage (15~30 days) | 101 (33.0) | 32 (31.4) |
| Chronic stage (>30 days) | 96 (31.4) | 32 (31.4) |
| Segments of lumbar disc herniation&: no. of patients (%) | ||
| One segment (L3/L4 or L4/L5 or L5/S1) | 61 (19.9) | 19 (18.6) |
| Two segments (L3/L4 and L4/L5 or L4/L5 and L5/S1) | 196 (64.1) | 67 (65.7) |
| Three segments (L3/L4 and L4/L5 and L5/S1) | 49 (16.0) | 16 (15.7) |
| VAS scores# (0~100) | 53.94 ± 19.60 | 56.00 ± 19.61 |
| C-SFODI† (0~100%) | 46.07 ± 20.56 | 49.59 ± 22.53 |
*Plus-minus values are means ± SD unless otherwise noted.
§Stage of the disease is divided according to duration of the low back pain symptoms first appeared of this time, acute stage (0~14 days), subacute stage (15~30 days), and chronic stage (>30 days).
#Visual analogue scale (VAS, range 0 to 100) with higher scores indicating greater pain.
&Based on imaging examination to determine the segments of lumbar disc herniation; L3/L4 means disc herniation between the third and fourth lumbar, and the others are the same.
†The Chinese Short Form Oswestry Disability Index (C-SFODI, range 0 to 100%) consists of 9 questions. A higher percentage indicates a more severe functional disability.