***TASK*** the task is to summarize an input biomedical literature in six sentences 
    ***INPUT*** the input is a biomedical literature 
    ***OUTPUT*** the output is the summary of an input biomedical literature in six sentences 
    ***DOCUMENTATION*** 
    ***EXAMPLES*** 
    Input: Objectives : To present the prevalence of  self reported musculoskeletal diseases  , the coexistence of these diseases , the test-retest reliability with six months in between , and the association with musculoskeletal pain symptoms . Methods : Twelve layman descriptions of common musculoskeletal diseases were part of the question naires of a prospect i ve cohort study of a r and om sample in the general Dutch population aged 25 years or more ( baseline : n=3664 , follow up after six months : n=2338 ) . Data collection also included information about pain relating to five different anatomical areas . Results : Osteoarthritis of the knee ( men 10.1 % , women 13.6 % ) was amongst the most reported musculoskeletal diseases , whereas the figures for self reported rheumatoid arthritis ( RA ) were 1.6 % and 4.6 % for men and women , respectively . The coexistence of these diseases is high : 47 of the 66 combinations were reported more often than would be expected if they were independent of each other ( p<0.05 ) . For most diseases the test-retest reliability was good ( κ between 0.6 and 0.8 ) , but for repetitive strain injury ( κ=0.37 ) and chronic arthritis other than RA ( κ=0.44 ) the agreement was fair to moderate . All complaints of pain were more often reported by those with musculoskeletal diseases than those without those diseases , and the pain pattern was disease-specific . Conclusions : Self reported musculoskeletal diseases are highly prevalent , with a fair to good reliability and a disease-specific pain pattern . Health surveys are a limited but valuable source of information for this group of health problems , which is not available from most other sources of information OBJECTIVE The present study aim ed to evaluate the effects of Pilates exercise program on pain , functional status and quality of life in women with postmenopausal osteoporosis . DESIGN The study was performed as a r and omized , prospect i ve , controlled and single-blind trial . PARTICIPATIONS : Seventy women ( age range , 45 - 65 years ) with the diagnosis of postmenopausal osteoporosis were included . METHODS AND INTERVENTIONS Patients were r and omly allocated into two groups ( home and Pilates exercise groups ) . Patients in the Pilates exercise group underwent a supervised Pilates exercise program twice a week for one year . Patients in the home exercise group were asked to perform a home exercise program consisting of thoracic extension exercises . Patients were evaluated at baseline and after one year of participation in the exercise programs . MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS Visual Analog Scale for pain , six-minute walking and sit-to-st and tests for functional status , and the Qualeffo-41 Question naire and the Short Form-36 ( SF-36 ) for quality of life . Patients were also asked to report the number of falls during the intervention . RESULTS At the end of the study , the results of 60 patients were analyzed . A significant improvement was noted in all evaluation parameters at the end of the exercise program in the Pilates exercise group . Except for Qualeffo- Leisure Time Activities , SF-36 physical role limitation and emotional role limitation subscales , a significant improvement was noted in all other evaluation parameters at the end of the exercise program in the home exercise group . Improvement was significantly greater in the Pilates exercise group compared to the home exercise group in all parameters . CONCLUSION Pilates exercises may be a safe and an effective treatment alternative for the quality of life in patients with postmenopausal osteoporosis Background Chronic low back pain is an expensive and difficult condition to treat . One of the interventions widely used by physiotherapists in the treatment of chronic non-specific low back pain is exercise therapy based upon the Pilates principles . Pilates exercises can be performed with or without specific equipment . These two types of Pilates exercises have never been compared on a high- quality r and omised controlled trial . Methods / design This r and omised controlled trial with a blinded assessor will evaluate eighty six patients of both genders with chronic low back pain , aged between 18 and 60 years , from one Brazilian private physiotherapy clinic . The patients will be r and omly allocated into two groups : Mat Group will perform the exercises on the ground while the Equipment-based Group will perform the Pilates method exercises on the following equipment : Cadillac , Reformer , Ladder Barrel , and Step Chair . The general and specific disability of the patient , kinesiophobia , pain intensity and global perceived effect will be evaluated by a blinded assessor before r and omisation and at six weeks and six months after r and omisation . In addition , the expectation of the participants and their confidence with the treatment will be evaluated before r and omisation and after the first treatment session , respectively . Discussion This will be the first study aim ing to compare the effectiveness of Mat and Equipment-based Pilates exercises in patients with chronic non-specific low back pain . The results may help health-care professionals in clinical decision-making and could potentially reduce the treatment costs of this condition . Trial registration Brazilian Registry of Clinical Trials UNLABELLED Altan L , Korkmaz N , Bingol U , Gunay B. Effect of Pilates training on people with fibromyalgia syndrome : a pilot study . OBJECTIVE To investigate the effects of Pilates on pain , functional status , and quality of life in fibromyalgia , which is known to be a chronic musculoskeletal disorder . DESIGN R and omized , prospect i ve , controlled , and single-blind trial . SETTING Physical medicine and rehabilitation department . PARTICIPANTS Women ( N=50 ) who had a diagnosis of fibromyalgia syndrome ( FMS ) according to the American College of Rheumatology criteria . INTERVENTION The participants were r and omly assigned into 2 groups . In group 1 , a Pilates exercise program of 1 hour was given by a certified trainer to 25 participants 3 times a week for 12 weeks . In group 2 , which was design ed as the control group , 25 participants were given a home exercise ( relaxation/stretching ) program . In both groups , pre- ( week 0 ) and posttreatment ( week 12 and week 24 ) evaluation was performed by one of the authors , who was blind to the group allocation . MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Primary outcome measures were pain ( visual analog scale ) and Fibromyalgia Impact Question naire ( FIQ ) . Exploratory outcome measures were number of tender points , algometric score , chair test , and Nottingham Health Profile . RESULTS Twenty-five Pilates exercise and 24 relaxation/stretching exercise  participants completed the study . In group 1 , significant improvement was observed in both pain and FIQ at week 12 but only in FIQ at 24 weeks . In group 2 , no significant improvement was obtained in pain and FIQ at week 12 and week 24 . Comparison of the 2 groups showed significantly superior improvement in pain and FIQ in group 1 at week 12 but no difference between the 2 groups at week 24 . CONCLUSIONS We suggest Pilates as an effective and safe method for people with FMS . Our study is the first clinical study design ed to investigate the role of the Pilates method in FMS treatment . We believe that further research with more participants and longer follow-up periods could help assess the therapeutic value of this popular physical exercise method [ Purpose ] The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of mat Pilates and apparatus Pilates on pain and static balance of businesswomen with chronic back pain . [ Subjects and Methods ] Participants were r and omly allocated to Pilates mat exercises ( PME ) or Pilates apparatus exercise ( PAE ) , and performed the appropriate Pilates exercises 3 days per week for 8 weeks . In order to measure the improvement in the participants ’ static balance ability as a result of the exercise , the sway length and sway velocity of the subjects were measured before and after the experiment while the subjects stood on a Balance Performance Monitor ( BPM ) facing the front wall for 30 seconds with their eyes open . The visual analogue scale ( VAS ) was used to measure the degree of pain . [ Results ] The VAS score , sway length , and sway velocity of both groups decreased significantly after the experiment , but the PME group showed a greater decrease than the PAE group . [ Conclusion ] PME showed greater improvement in pain level and balance compared with PAE in this research . Since the subjects of this study were patients with low back pain , PME is assumed to have been more suitable and effective because it uses body weight to strengthen core muscles rather than heavier apparatuses as in PAE PURPOSE This single-assessor-blinded r and omized controlled trial aim ed to compare the efficacy of physiotherapy-delivered clinical Pilates and general exercise for chronic low back pain  . METHODS Eighty-seven community volunteers with low back pain for ≥3 months and age 18 - 70 were r and omized to either the Pilates ( n = 44 ) or general exercise ( n = 43 ) group . The primary outcome was pain/disability measured with the Quebec scale . Secondary outcomes included pain on a numeric rating scale , Patient-Specific Functional Scale , Pain Self-efficacy Question naire , quality of life , and global perceived effect of treatment . All participants attended 60-min exercise sessions twice weekly for 6 wk supervised by a physiotherapist and performed daily home exercises that were continued during the follow-up . Participants from the clinical Pilates group received an individualized direction-specific exercise program prescribed by the physiotherapist after a clinical examination . The general exercise group received a generic set of exercises that were multidirectional and nonspecific . Outcomes were assessed after 6 wk ( primary time point ) and at 12 and 24 wk . Differences in mean change were compared between groups using ANCOVA adjusted for baseline values of the outcome . RESULTS Eighty-three participants ( 96 % ) completed the 6-wk intervention and 60 ( 69 % ) completed the 24-wk follow-up . At 6 wk , no difference was found between groups for change in the Quebec scale ( 3.5 , 95 % confidence interval = -7.3 to 0.3 , P = 0.07 ) ; both groups showed significant improvements . Similar results were found at the 12- and 24-wk follow-up and for the secondary outcome measures . CONCLUSIONS An individualized clinical Pilates program produced similar beneficial effects on self-reported disability , pain , function and health-related quality of life  as a general exercise program in community volunteers with chronic low back pain Study Design . R and omized controlled trial . Objective . This is the companion study to a previous publication that presented 8-week pain , disability , and trunk muscle motor control results . The objective of this study was to compare the effect of 8 weeks of specific trunk exercises and stationary cycling on outcomes measures of catastrophizing and fear-avoidance beliefs ( FAB ) in patients with chronic nonspecific low back pain , and provide 6-month outcome data for all self-report measures . Summary of Background Data . It is thought that any form of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity is sufficient to address catastrophizing and FAB , and concomitant levels of pain and disability . Methods . Sixty-four patients with low back pain were r and omly assigned to 8 weeks of specific trunk exercise group ( SEG ) , or stationary cycling group ( CEG ) .  Self-rated pain , disability , catastrophizing and FAB scores were collected before , immediately after ( 8 wk ) , and 6 months after the training program . Clinical ly meaningful improvements were defined as greater than a 30 % reduction from baseline in pain and disability scores . “ Intention-to-treat ” principles were used for missing data . Per- protocol analysis was performed on participants who attended at least two-thirds of the exercise sessions . Results . At 8 weeks , disability was significantly lower in the SEG compared with the CEG ( d = 0.62 , P = 0.018 ) . Pain was reduced from baseline in both the groups after training ( P < 0.05 ) , but was lower for the SEG ( P < 0.05 ) . FAB scores were reduced in the SEG at 8 weeks , and in the CEG at 6 months . No between-group differences in FAB scores were observed . Similar reductions in catastrophizing in each group were observed at each time point . At 6 months , the overall data pattern suggested no long-term difference between groups . Per- protocol analysis of clinical ly meaningful improvements suggests no between-group differences for how many patients are likely to report improvement . Conclusion . Inferential statistics suggest greater improvements at 8 weeks , but not 6 months , for the SEG . Inspection of clinical ly meaningful changes based on a minimum level of adherence suggests no between-group differences . If a patient with low back pain adheres to either specific trunk exercises or stationary cycling , it is reasonable to think that similar improvements will be achieved . Level of Evidence : OBJECTIVE To evaluate the influence of pain on vertical ground-reaction force ( VGRF ) in patients with low back problems and the effect of the Pilates method on the gait of these patients . DESIGN A single-blind r and omized controlled trial . PARTICIPANTS 28 individuals assigned to a control group ( n = 11 ) and a low-back group ( n = 17 ) , the latter of which was subdivided into a Pilates group ( n = 8) and a no-Pilates group ( n = 9 ) . INTERVENTION The Pilates group undertook 15 sessions of Pilates . MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES The VGRF parameters were recorded during preferred and faster walking speeds . The data were collected before and after the intervention . RESULTS The weight-acceptance rate and push-off rate were significantly less in the right lower limb of low-back group than of the control group at preferred speed . Improvements were seen in the Pilates group postintervention , with increased middle-support force for the left lower limb at faster walking speed and decreased pain ; this did not occur in the no-Pilates group . CONCLUSIONS These results suggest that patients with low back pain use strategies to attenuate the amount of force imposed on their body . The Pilates method can improve weight 
    Output:
    
The items were stratified as follows : Pilates method versus other kind of exercises ( n = 6 trials ) and Pilates method versus no treatment group or minimal intervention for short-term pain ( n = 9 trials ) ; the therapeutic effect of the Pilates method in r and omized cohorts ( n = 5 ) ; and analysis of review s ( n = 9).We found that there is a dearth of studies that clearly demonstrates the efficacy of a specific Pilates exercise program over another in the treatment of chronic pain .
However , the consensus in the field suggests that Pilates method is more effective than minimal physical exercise intervention  in reducing pain .