Breathing muscle findings in low back pain were inconsistent
A review found differing diaphragm and abdominal muscle patterns, but no consistent explanation linking these observations to back pain or to better treatment.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
People with low back pain showed differences in some diaphragm and abdominal muscle measurements compared with healthy participants. The findings varied across studies, and diaphragm function results were inconsistent. These observational comparisons cannot show whether muscle changes contribute to pain, result from it or identify a breathing treatment that would help.
The included studies used case-control or cross-sectional designs. The abstract provides no pooled effect sizes or follow-up details, and inconsistent results limit conclusions about a common muscle pattern in low back pain.
Changes did not align
Some studies reported thicker abdominal muscles, while others found reduced thickness and activity. Diaphragm thickness, movement and fatigue also varied. This makes a single explanation for the reported differences difficult to support from the abstract.
A result without clear difference
The review found no statistically significant difference in lumbar multifidus size during breathing. That result does not prove the groups were equivalent, and it should remain separate from findings concerning the diaphragm and abdominal muscles.
The original publication
The breath-back connection: A systematic review.
Mirtaleb A, Rahmani N, Kazemi K et al.
J Bodyw Mov Ther · 2025
- PubMed ID
- 40954640
- Record checked
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