ArticleJournal of physical therapy science2026
Balloon-based exercise enhances abdominal activation: a comparison between one expert and one novice with chronic low back pain.
Article in Journal of physical therapy science, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Genome-Wide Characterization of the TGF-β Gene Family in Donkey (Animals : an open access journal from MDPI · 2026Article
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Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
[Purpose] While forced exhalation with balloon-blowing has been reported to facilitate abdominal muscle activity, few studies have examined its effects using imaging. We aimed to compare abdominal muscle morphology across three conditions, end-inspiration, end-forced expiration, and end-forced expiration with balloon-blowing, between a balloon-blowing exercise expert and a novice with chronic low back pain, assessed using ultrasound imaging. [Participants and Methods] A 61-year-old male expert and a 51-year-old male novice participated. The thicknesses of the transversus abdominis, internal oblique, and external oblique were measured using ultrasound imaging during end-inspiration, end-forced expiration, and end-forced expiration with balloon-blowing. The thickness and contraction ratios, calculated by dividing the thickness at end-forced expiration by that at end-inspiration, were compared within and between participants. [Results] The expert demonstrated a 1.33 mm thicker transversus abdominis and a 4.95 mm thicker internal oblique than those of the novice at end-inspiration. Balloon-blowing increased all muscle thicknesses in both participants compared with end-inspiration. The contraction ratios of the muscles during forced expiration with balloon blowing were 1.14- to 1.80-fold higher than the ratios at end-forced expiration in both participants. [Conclusion] These findings suggest the potential usefulness of balloon-blowing for activating abdominal muscles, especially in individuals with chronic low back pain.
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