Back Support Belts – Benefits & Types Of Supports

Guarding the back using support belts or braces is a good idea for those who have a muscle strain, joint sprain or some other types of injuries or recovery after surgery. If you have back pain and need to keep working or maintain a certain level of activity, back support belts are a great help. Back belts are commonplace in most jobs where heavy lifting is required.

We do not recommend using them for show. Support belts are ubiquitous; they come in many styles and designs and range from very cheap ones to high tech belts that are very effective.

When back support belts are designed well, they deliver support that helps prevent and relieve back pain resulting from muscle strain, spasms, sprains and disc problems. For some, this can mean better recovery or be a lifeline to those who need to keep going when your back pain normally prevents daily or work activities.

By constraining action involving muscle groups and suspensory ligaments, back support belts additionally assist in improving good posture as well as serving to prompt one to make use of safe lifting techniques.

Elastic Belts

Elastic back support belts are for mild to moderate pain levels and lifting tasks. There are so many types of these braces. How do you know what you can count on to be effective. Many are cumbersome, made of cheap materials and can be either just a low grade wrapping that does nothing or will provide support by sacrificing comfort. While no brace is completely comfortable to wear for long periods, elastic belts are affordable and often effective.

Back Belts Using Mechanical Advantage

These braces are made of extraordinarily strong, yet breathable materials that are non-stretch, yet pliable for better compression without giving up comfort. The non-bulky, very low-profile design provides discrete wearability. Comfort and control add up for quicker healing. These belts maximize a smooth, dynamic approach to abdominal compression, providing stability and control of the spine. Adjusting the belt takes about 1 second, with minimal motion or unwanted body movement. An easy, effortless pull with one hand effectively tightens the belt and you’re ready to go! High pull ratios makes them very powerful and stable supports.

The mechanical back support belts are used for moderate to severe levels of pain. Those who do heavy lifting at periods throughout the day will benefit from a strong belt. While comfortable to wear for long periods, it is best to use during heavy lifting tasks, or mild lifting task when in a lot of pain. If you have a choice, don’t lift when you are in pain. If you must, this type is the belt to use. The belts comes with one or more panels which enhance stability and maximize compression. These are best to manage inflammation due to the higher compression levels.

Employing this advantage, the Back Brace is a favorite regarding cost and effectiveness. It is a basic member of the family of belts using mechanical advantage for stability and ease of use. It employs a distinctive fastening mechanism as well as supporting system. This is the one I use. It provides superior stabilization and durability and I highly recommend it.

For those familiar with Modic 1 degeneration of the spine and antibiotic therapy, lumbar supports are effective for low grade spinal infections. 6-10 weeks wearing a highly supportive brace in combination with antibiotic therapy is recommended. While most cases of spondylodiscitis infection is treated surgically and aggressively, this recommendation is for cases that can be treated conservatively, where there is a low grade infection, usually with disc herniation.[1]

For those who suffer back pain from Modic I infection who are undergoing therapy with antibiotics, as well as related mechanical progressive degeneration, spinal loading like heavy lifting should be avoided. Wearing a strong, supportive braces with mechanical advantage is highly recommended, should any lifting or stressful activity be necessary.

Benefits Of Wearing Support Belts

The advantages effect components of back pain, like restriction of motion to help confine the disc, joints and muscles. Bending forward may increase disc pressure, while bending back may irritate facet joints. Conditions involving both of these structures can result in back pain with pain radiating into the lower limb.

Increasing abdominal pressure without strain, as the bracing helps to minimize disc compression and allows daily and work activities with less force on sensitive structures. Support belts can also effect posture control with an educative outcome from maintaining the spinal column within normal limits. Helping to stabilize the spine can create better posture, with mechanical belts actually restricting postures that can harm the spine.

During the acute stage of an injury, rest and ice/cold applications are usually recommended for the first few days depending on the extent of injury. The goal is to reduce inflammation and further damage.

Using a support offers the impaired tissues the ability to recover without having additional damage. Compression helps with managing and minimizing inflammation. As your condition progresses, belts can help manage initial stages of activity through healing with greater levels of motion and warmth for increased circulation.

Braces are often used with chronic pain, especially overuse injuries where the tissues do not receive sufficient rest periods for healing and are frequently re-injured. Optimum stabilization using a mechanical or elastic support can help under situations where rest and restorative therapy are either insufficient or not possible.

Stability is a feature which supplies added support to weakened tissues. For instance, a lower back muscle strain can lead to weakness of the suspensory ligaments which support the spine and pelvis. Appropriate back support belts which have a higher amount of ergonomic force can help the weakened ligaments capability to stabilize.

The primary principle of back support belts is stabilization of joints, however, muscle are also stimulated. The materials ensure controlled compression with panel inserts and massage provided by pads that are integrated into the support helps with inflammation. There can be multiple functions in using a support; relief, stabilization, immobilization, mobilization, and correction. The back can be immobilized and may be mobilized with motion in a controlled manner. It is possible to use them to for posture correction as well.

Scientific Evidence For Using Back Braces

A stronger back belt that adds to motion restriction and trunk stiffness produces better results in disability scores than a more elastic type of brace with standard care for lower back pain.[2] Lumbar spine function does not worsen when using a mechanical advantage type belt continuously for 2 weeks for those both with and without back pain.[3]

For particular radiographic results from the degenerative disc disease process, using back belts as much as four hours per day in addition to rest was in fact as good as exercising with regard to chronic lower back pain.[4]

Using belts for chronic back pain enhances lower back pain relief as well as improves muscular endurance within a limited time period. Low back muscular weakness had not been elevated with extended use of back belts and deterioration of back muscle groups is not experienced approximately six months following the beginning of using belts.[5]

When wearing a lumbosacral back belt for 3 months, the number of days with pain as well as lower back pain intensity decreased significantly. Wearing the support for 3 months did not negatively effect the muscles and a support that tightly supports the lower back is effective for reducing mild low back pain as well as increased walking efficiency.[6]

A belt can improve health related quality of life, improve postural steadiness and decrease sacroiliac joint related pain. The authors state that sacroiliac belts are considered both cost effective and a low risk treatment of sacroiliac joint pain.[7]

Who will benefit from support belts? 70% of home care workers with low back pain reported they perceived benefit from wearing a support, with high compliance. The more perceived benefits of reducing pain, the better the results. There is high compliance using a belt if you consider you can influence your own health. Wearing a brace can have positive effects which are greatly influenced by wearer beliefs.[8]

A good elastic lumbar belt can significantly improve pain level, functional status, and pain medication use in patients with low back pain.[9] There is over 87% agreement rating for those suspected with lumbar instability in getting relief with use of a back brace or corset.[10]

Do Back Support Belts Cause Muscle Weakness?

There are many health care professionals who may indicate that back braces cause muscle weakness and therefore should not be worn. In certain cases this may be true, however, the literature does not support this opinion. There is no conclusive scientific evidence to indicate support belts result in weakness of trunk muscles.[11] and no negative effects with continuous use of back belts for 1 to 6 months.[12]

Wearing a back belt as a protective device can be beneficial when lifting. Wearing a simple elastic type belt should be for reinforcing proper lifting habits. A back belt used when lifting enhances rectus abdominis muscle activity, preventing weakness of the transversus abdominis muscle while improving abdominal pressure.[13]

A back belt reduces loading of the trunk muscles and the strength of the back muscles and abdominal muscles can actually increase.[14] In construction workers with back pain, after 2 months of wearing a back belt, trunk flexor muscle endurance as well as strength increased by 29%.[15]

Elastic lumbar support belts for acute lumbar back pain produced a reduction of abdominal amplitude levels from the stabilization which elevated intra-abdominal pressure thus enhancing spinal stability. This offered coordinated action of the trunk muscles to improve stability. The belt, with its movement restricting effect, activates the paravertebral spinal musculature.

The effect of elastic belts is a temporary neutral alteration of trunk muscle coordination and not uniform de-conditioning. There is a significant improvement of functional impairment in acute back pain by wearing an elastic lumbar support belt. Interestingly, belt use displayed reduced pain and a better activity related effect during walking, as the spine is better stabilized.[16]

Doctor’s Note On Back Support Belts

Experience indicates that patients tend feel more stable and safer during physical activity when wearing belts. Self reported surveys do indicate that in those with lower back pain, wearing a belt permits continuation of activities with less discomfort. Good supports can help patients take control of their condition and foster responsibility and self-awareness.

I do not like wearing back support belts continuously all day at work if you do not experience back problems. Most workers will just wear them loosely where they can interfere with activities. Wearing them compressed all day without problems may lead to altered biomechanics. The problem can come when the braces are not used.

One of the techniques I use myself when using the mechanical advantage belt, is to slowly release the pressure. It is simple enough with the pulley system to release the pressure for a few minutes, then repeat a few times before removing. With severe levels of degeneration I need a very strong belt. This helps increase activity levels, reduce injury and improve balance.

Determining if a particular support is appropriate and if you have the capacity to benefit from it’s functionality to the fullest depends on your particular condition, fitness level, activity level, and a complete examination by health care professional is very important.

In addition to a compression and sizing variation, the adhesion of the belt greatly influences the pressure. Slippage not only minimizes compression, but allows an asymmetrical application that reduces correct pressure application. Therefore, avoid slippery materials and make sure that the belt is applied evenly. This means for one sided pull braces, the method of closure and tightening should be done carefully to maximize symmetrical application. Failure to do so may result in almost two and a half times more pressure on one side compared to the other.

Other factors like belt material in relation to skin pressure and condition, and things like humidity play a role as well. Finding a reasonable balance can lead to better selection and application of back support belts.

References:
1. Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2013 Nov 1;110(44):737-42
2. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2014 Oct 1;39(21):1733-42
3. Spine J. 2015 Oct 1;15(10):2222-7
4. BMC Med. 2012 Feb 29:10:22
5. Fukushima J Med Sci. 2012;58(1):60-5
6. Fukushima J Med Sci. 2014;60(2):141-8
7. PLoS One. 2015 Aug 25;10(8):e0136375
8. Occup Med (Lond). 2002 Sep;52(6):317-23
9. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2009 Feb 1;34(3):215-20
10. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2018 Dec;48(12):915-922
11. Spine J. 2017 Apr;17(4):589-602
12. Spine J. 2017 Jun;17(6):889-900
13. J Med Assoc Thai. 2014 Jul:97 Suppl 7:S75-9
14. J Orthop Sci. 2002;7(4):483-9
15. J Spinal Disord. 1992 Sep;5(3):260-6
16. PLoS One. 2019 Jan 24;14(1):e0211042