Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Volume 91, Issue 1 , Pages 15-19 , January 2010

The Effectiveness of Walking Stick Use for Neurogenic Claudication: Results From a Randomized Trial and the Effects on Walking Tolerance and Posture

  • Christine M. Comer, MSc

      Affiliations

    • Academic Unit of Musculoskeletal Disease, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
    • ,
  • Mark I. Johnson, PhD, BSc, PGCHE

      Affiliations

    • Faculty of Health, Leeds Metropolitan University, Leeds, UK
    • ,
  • Paul R. Marchant, PhD, CStat, BSc, MSc, FRAS

      Affiliations

    • Faculty of Information and Technology, Leeds Metropolitan University, NIHR Leeds Musculoskeletal Biomedical Research Unit, Leeds, UK
    • ,
  • Anthony C. Redmond, PhD, MSc

      Affiliations

    • Academic Unit of Musculoskeletal Disease, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
    • ,
  • Howard A. Bird, MD, FRCP

      Affiliations

    • Academic Unit of Musculoskeletal Disease, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
    • ,
  • Philip G. Conaghan, MBBS, PhD, FRACP, FRCP

      Affiliations

    • Academic Unit of Musculoskeletal Disease, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
    • Section of Musculoskeletal Disease, Leeds Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorrespondence to Philip G. Conaghan, MBBS, PhD, FRACP, FRCP, Section of Musculoskeletal Disease, Chapel Allerton Hospital, Chapeltown Road, Leeds LS7 4SA, United Kingdom

References 

  1. Porter RW. Spinal stenosis and neurogenic claudication. Spine. 1996;21:2046–2052
  2. Willen J, Danielson B, Gaulitz A, Niklason T, Schonstrom N, Hansson T. Dynamic effects on the lumbar spinal canal: axially loaded CT-myelography and MRI in patients with sciatica and/or neurogenic claudication. Spine. 1997;22:2968–2976
  3. Atlas SJ, Delitto A. Spinal stenosis: surgical versus nonsurgical treatment. Clin Orthop Relat Res. 2006;Feb(443):198–207
  4. Gibson JN, Waddell G. Surgery for degenerative lumbar spondylosis: updated Cochrane Review. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2005;30:2312–2320
  5. In:  Bulstrode C,  Buckwalter J,  Carr A, et al. editor. Oxford textbook of orthopaedics & trauma. 1st ed.. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2002;
  6. In:  Evans JG,  Williams TF,  Beattie BL,  Michel JP,  Wilcock GK editor. The Oxford textbook of geriatric medicine. 2nd ed.. Oxford: Oxford University Pr; 2003;
  7. Pratt RK, Fairbank JC, Virr A. The reliability of the Shuttle Walking Test, the Swiss Spinal Stenosis Questionnaire, the Oxford Spinal Stenosis Score, and the Oswestry Disability Index in the assessment of patients with lumbar spinal stenosis. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2002;27:84–91
  8. In:  Kirkwood B,  Sterne J editor. Essential medical statistics. 2nd ed.. Oxford: Blackwell Science; 2003;
  9. In:  Watson MS editors. Oxford handbook of palliative care. 1st ed.. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2005;
  10. Singh SJ, Morgan MD, Scott S, Walters D, Hardman AE. Development of a shuttle walking test of disability in patients with chronic airways obstruction. Thorax. 1992;47:1019–1024
  11. In:  Matthews JN editors. An introduction to randomised controlled clinical trials. London: Arnold Publishers; 2000;Arnold; 2000
  12. Goldman SM, Barice EJ, Schneider WR, Hennekens CH. Lumbar spinal stenosis: can positional therapy alleviate pain?. J Fam Pract. 2008;57:257–260
  13. Zeifang F, Schiltenwolf M, Abel R, Moradi B. Gait analysis does not correlate with clinical and MR imaging parameters in patients with symptomatic lumbar spinal stenosis. BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2008;9:89
  14. Goldman SM. Neurogenic positional pedal neuritis (Common pedal manifestations of spinal stenosis). J Am Podiatr Med Assoc. 2003;93:174–184
  15. Goldman S. Value of a grocery cart and walker in identification and management of symptomatic spinal stenosis in diabetic patients presenting with peripheral neuropathy or claudication [Letter]. Diabetes Care. 2003;26:1943
  16. Oğuz H, Levendoğlu F, Oğün TC, Tantu A. Loading is more effective than posture in lumbar spinal stenosis: a study with a treadmill equipment. Eur Spine J. 2007;16:913–918

 Supported by a project grant from Leeds Primary Care Trusts Research Consortium. Comer is funded in part by the Arthritis Research Campaign UK (grant no. 18183).

 Trial registration is ISRCTN registered (ISRCTN35836727) and NRR registered (N0436193958).

 No commercial party having a direct financial interest in the results of the research supporting this article has or will confer a benefit on the authors or on any organization with which the authors are associated.

 Reprints are not available from the author.

PII: S0003-9993(09)00757-6

doi: 10.1016/j.apmr.2009.08.149

Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Volume 91, Issue 1 , Pages 15-19 , January 2010

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