low back pain , a representative symptom that appears due to a lowered stability of the body 
 resulting from imbalance between the trunk flexor and extensor , is one of the most common 
 disorders in life . acute low back pain often presents because of excessive movements of the 
 erector spinae muscle resulting from lowered flexibility caused by an imbalance of the trunk 
 muscles or weakening of trunk muscle strength1 . the weakening of the erector spinae muscle may be caused by a lack 
 of muscle strength , resulting from insufficient exercise , obesity , and improper posture ; 
 such causes may lead to abnormalities in different structures of the lumbar region , 
 resulting in acute low back pain2 . patients with low back pain 
 find it difficult to lead a smooth , ordinary life due to the pain ; social problems include 
 many medical costs and failure to participate in socially productive activities3 . to manage low back pain , various exercises , such as aerobics , yoga , and pilates , as well 
 as traditional physical therapy methods , are utilized to decrease low back pain . recently , 
 lumbar stabilization exercises have been frequently used as an exercise to ameliorate the 
 muscle strength of low back pain patients and to relieve their pain . lumbar stabilization 
 exercises improve deep muscle strength and increase range of motion through enhanced muscle 
 strength , with positive results for low back pain patients ; therefore , these exercises are 
 frequently applied in the clinical field4 . although such lumbar stabilization exercises may be incorporated into training programs for 
 young people , elderly people need therapists or trainers with expert knowledge because the 
 difficulties and intensities of the exercises should be adjusted with precision . on the 
 other hand , tai chi does 
 not demand great force in its motions but seeks improvements in balance through postural 
 stability , increased flexibility , and slow motions , enabling elderly people to perform the 
 exercises easily . it is not an activity involving instant great force , and therefore , it is 
 appropriate for elderly people . tai chi is employed as an effective exercise for elderly 
 people for different purposes , such as to build strength , flexibility , and cardiovascular 
 endurance and to improve body composition5 . in relation to self - help programs , tai chi and aquatic training may be utilized as 
 effective exercise methods for patients with gonarthritis6 , 7 . in addition , tai chi is 
 helpful in terms of physical and mental health8 . nonetheless , previous studies have focused on patients with 
 osteoarthritis , which presents in middle - aged or older people or elderly stroke patients , 
 while research on young adults has been insufficient . this experiment was conducted in 
 order to determine whether tai chi might be used as an effective exercise program for young 
 female adults in their 20s with acute low back pain by comparing changes in muscle activity , 
 pain , and balance ability . the subjects were females in their 20s with acute low back pain that lasted for three weeks 
 or shorter9 . one group conducted tai chi , and the other group carried out stretching 
 for eight weeks . an orthopedist had diagnosed the subjects with acute low back pain , and 
 they voluntarily participated in this experiment . those who had abnormalities other than low 
 back pain were excluded . a surface electromyography system ( mp150 , biopac systems , inc . , goleta , ca , usa ) was used to measure muscle activity , and ag - ag / cl electrodes were employed . the activity of the erector spinae muscle was measured , and the electrodes were attached 
 2  cm from the l3 spinous process . in order to eliminate noises , a 60-hz notch filter was 
 used . data were processed by conducting band - pass filtering at 20 to 500  hz . to calculate 
 the value of maximal isometric contraction during a manual muscle test , % mvic was used . marching in place was conducted for 10 s. emg was performed during the sit to stand 
 maneuver , as this is the most frequently performed motion . measurement of balance was 
 performed in a standing position . excluding the first and last two seconds pain was measured using a visual analog scale ( vas ) , 
 and a good balance system was used to measure balance ability . the measurement elements for 
 balance ability were left and right side movement distance and forward and backward movement 
 distance . the shorter the movement distance , the better the ability to remain in a position 
 using balance . the subjects carried out tai chi and stretching exercises three times per 
 week , one hour each time , for a total of eight weeks . each of the sessions was composed of 
 warm - up exercises for 10  min , primary exercises for 40  min , and cool - down exercises for 
 10  min . a series of motions including yamabunjong , bongrian , baekhakyangsi , suhuibipa , 
 nuseulyobo , jesusangse , and yeobongsapei were conducted in a flow mode for 20  min . the 
 motions were carried out twice . for stretching , the subjects repetitively performed lower 
 limb , trunk , and upper limb exercises in a sequential manner . this was conducted after 
 approval of safety , all procedures , and ethics by the research ethics committee of kyungbook 
 university . the subjects agreed to participate in this study after explanation of its 
 methods and purpose . spss was used for statistical processing , and a paired t - test was 
 carried out to examine changes according to the intervention , and an independent t - test was 
 used to compare the two groups . in both groups , muscle activity and pain significantly decreased . however , regarding 
 balance , the left and right side movement distance significantly decreased in the tai chi 
 group but did not statistically change in the stretching group . as measurement elements with 
 significant differences , the tai chi group s muscle activity and pain decreased from 
 26.13.9%mvic to 22.70.6%mvic and from 3.60.7 to 2.10.6 , respectively , and its left and 
 right side movement distance in relation to balance ability was reduced from 157.441.1  mm 
 to 131.529.2  mm ( p<0.05 ) . the stretching group s muscle activity and pain also decreased 
 from 27.33.6%mvic to 25.73.4%mvic and from 3.60.4 to 2.50.6 , respectively ( p<0.05 ) . however , with regard to the group s balance ability , its forward and backward movement 
 distance decreased from 181.952.8  mm to 164.366.1  mm , with no statistical significance . in 
 addition , the stretching group s left and right side movement distance and forward and 
 backward movement distance decreased from 162.751.8  mm to 153.645.8  mm and from 
 219.151.1  mm to 206.469.1  mm , respectively , with no statistical significance ( p>0.05 ) 
 ( table 1table 1.defferences in muscle activity , pain , and balance in the two groups ( % mvic , 
 vas ,  mm)groupbeforeaftermsdmsdmuscle activitytai chi26.13.922.70.6stretching27.33.625.73.4paintai chi3.60.72.10.6stretching3.60.42.50.6balance(left - right)tai chi157.441.1131.529.2stretching162.751.8153.6145.8(forward - backward)tai chi181.952.8164.366.1stretching219.151.1206.469.1 
 * p<0.05 ) . this study was conducted in order to determine changes in low back pain when tai chi was 
 applied to female patients in their 20s with acute low back pain . in order to assess 
 changes , muscle activity , vas , and balance elements muscle 
 activity decreased from 26.13.9%mvic to 22.70.6%mvic in the tai chi group and from 
 27.33.6%mvic to 25.73.4%mvic in the stretching group , showing statistically significant 
 changes ( p<0.05 ) . it can be interpreted that the activity of the postural muscles 
 decreased because efficient postural maintenance was possible . this is similar to previous 
 research that experimented with changes in muscle activity according to whether the subjects 
 put on a waist belt . when the subjects did not wear a waist belt , their muscle activity was 
 190.031.7%rvc ( reference voluntary contraction ) , but when they put on a waist belt , their 
 muscle activity decreased to 175.1730.34%rvc , with the change being statistically 
 significant10 . this is because putting 
 on a waist belt heightened the stability and reduced the mobilization of the erector spinae 
 muscle used for postural maintenance , resulting in lowered muscle activity . when stability 
 was heightened , postural maintenance with the lowest mobilization of the muscles is 
 possible , and therefore , the present study obtained a result similar to the results of 
 previous research11,12,13 . in addition , in the balance elements of tai chi , there were statistically significant 
 changes in the left and right side movement distance and the forward and backward movement 
 distance . among them , the left and right side movement distance decreased from 157.441.1  mm 
 to 131.529.2  mm , which was statistically significant ( p<0.05 ) . forward and backward 
 movement distance decreased from 181.952.8  mm to 164.366.1  mm , with the change not 
 statistically significant ( p>0.05 ) . the left and right side movement distance and forward 
 and backward movement distance of the control group , to which stretching was applied , 
 decreased from 162.751.8  mm to 153.645.8  mm and from 219.151.1  mm to 206.469.1  mm , 
 respectively , and the changes were not statistically significant . the smaller the left and 
 right side movement distance and the forward and backward movement distance are , the more 
 excellent the ability is to maintain balance within a small movement range . although the 
 movement distances of both the tai chi and stretching groups decreased , only the tai chi 
 group s left and right side movement distance showed a statistically significant decrease , 
 signifying that the intervention with tai chi improved balance ability . it can be interpreted that decreased muscle activity means that even the use of a small 
 amount of muscle strength enables stable postural maintenance , and a reduction in distances 
 in balance elements signifies improvements in balance ability . in effect , low back pain will 
 decrease because such a decrease in balance elements enables improvements in balance ability 
 and postural maintenance with a smaller amount of force . pain decreased from 3.60.7 to 2.10.6 in the tai chi group and from 
 3.60.4 to 2.50.6 in the stretching group . when the two groups were compared , the pain decrease of the tai chi group 
 was greater than that of the stretching group . in particular , the decrease in muscle 
 activity was greater in the tai chi group than in the stretching group ; the subjects in the 
 former group were able to stably maintain their posture with a smaller amount of force and 
 saw a more greatly improved balance ability with reduced larger reduction in pain . 
 stretching is often used as a good exercise to manage low back pain . in particular , 
 stretching is applied frequently in low back pain management programs for young adults . 
 according to the present study results , tai chi was more efficient in enhancing balance 
 ability and managing pain ; tai chi will be useful as an effective low back pain management 
 program , and it can be employed as an effective exercise program for females in their 20s 
 with acute low back pain . this study was conducted in order to examine the effects of tai 
 chi on female adults in their 20s with acute low back pain . the exercise effects of 
 stretching , which was performed in the control group , were compared with those of tai chi . 
 for this comparison , muscle 
 activity and pain decreased in both the tai chi and stretching groups , but tai chi was 
 found to be more effective . therefore , tai chi is considered an effective exercise program for decreasing acute low 
 back pain in females in their 20s .
[ purpose ] this study was conducted in order to examine the effects of tai chi on females 
 in their 20s with acute low back pain . 
 the subjects were 30 females in their 20s with 
 acute low back pain . 
 [ subjects and methods ] they were equally and randomly divided into a 
 tai chi group and a stretching group . 
 the intervention was applied three times per week , 
 one hour each time , for a total of eight weeks . during the one hour , 
 the subjects 
 conducted warm - up exercises for 10  min , primary exercises for 40  min , and cool - down 
 exercises for 10  min . in order to examine changes in low back pain in the patients 
 according to the intervention method , muscle activity , pain , and balance elements ( left 
 and right side movement distance , forward and backward movement distance ) were measured . 
 [ results ] muscle activity and the visual analog scale score significantly decreased in 
 both the tai chi group and the stretching group . regarding changes in balance elements , 
 the tai chi group s left and right side movement distance decreased , which was 
 statistically significant 
 . however , the tai chi group s forward and backward movement 
 distance and the stretching group s forward and backward movement distance and left and 
 right side movement distance did not change . [ conclusion ] 
 according to the results of this 
 study , tai chi is considered an appropriate exercise program to reduce acute low back 
 pain in females in their 20s . 
 this is because when compared with stretching , it enables 
 posture maintenance with lesser force due to decreased muscle activity , it is more helpful 
 for improvements in balance ability , and it is effective in decreasing pain .