Effects of lumbar disc injury and nociception on trunk motor control during rat locomotion

Intervertebral disc (IVD) injury is a major cause of low-back pain and can lead to structural deficits and mechanical instability. When the IVD is compromised, neuromuscular compensation by paraspinal muscles, such as the multifidus (MF) and longissimus (ML), is critical for maintaining spine stability. However, it is unknown how IVD injury and its interaction with nociception affect neuromuscular control. This study assessed the effects of IVD injury and additional muscle-derived nociception on trunk motor control during locomotion in a rat model. IVD injury was induced via needle puncture at L4/L5. One week later, hypertonic saline was injected into the lumbar MF to induce nociception. Trunk and pelvic kinematics, bilateral EMG activity of MF and ML were recorded during treadmill locomotion at baseline, one week after IVD injury, and immediately following hypertonic saline injection. Trunk and pelvic kinematics and bilateral muscle activation patterns remained largely consistent across conditions. No significant changes were found in stride duration, pelvic, lumbar and spine angle changes, variability, or movement asymmetry. MF activation was bilaterally synchronized, whereas ML showed left-right alternating activation patterns. Following IVD injury, right MF mean activation and EMG variability increased significantly compared to baseline. When muscle-derived nociception was added in the unstable spine (IVD injury) condition, left MF minimum amplitude was significantly reduced, and instability-related increases in right MF mean activation and variability were attenuated, but not fully reversed. These findings suggest that single-level IVD injury, alone or in combination with muscle-derived nociception, elicits localized neuromuscular adaptations without disrupting the global locomotor patterns.