Background: The Muscle Energy Technique (MET) is one of the treatments of choice for the management of chronic mechanical low back pain (MLBP); however, there is a paucity of evidence to justify its effectiveness in the management of chronic MLBP. Mechanical low back pain is the most common health problem that affects work performance and quality of life, and recently there has been an increase in the transition from the acute/subacute to the chronic state of the condition. Therefore, this review aims to explore, analyse and summarize available evidence related to the effectiveness of MET intervention in the management of chronic MLBP.

Method: The scoping review methodology was adopted based on a recommendation from the work of Arksey and O’Malley, to systematically appraise literature and map the existing evidence on the effectiveness of MET in the management of chronic MLBP. Selected databases were identified and key search terms were used to systematically appraise the literature which yielded 25,195 articles for the review.

Result: The articles were further systematically screened and 9 articles met this review’s inclusion criteria. The 9 studies included 8 RCTs, one case study and one pilot study, and only one study was conducted in Africa. The effectiveness of MET alone or in combination with other therapeutic procedures was examined and the studies reported MET to be effective in improving outcomes in patients with chronic MLBP.

Conclusion: Generally there exists a scarcity of published articles on the effect of MET on chronic LBP condition. However, from the analysis of the articles reviewed it can be concluded that MET procedure is a favourable approach that is both a safe and effective intervention for patients with chronic MLBP and consequently may provide numerous physical and psychosocial benefits to patients, however, empirical evidence is lacking to justify the outcomes.

Keywords: Muscle energy technique, manual therapy, chronic mechanical low back pain, dysfunction, disability and health.

Funding: This study is funded by the University of KwaZulu-Natal, the college of health sciences bursary.

Ethical approval: This study has been approved by the Biomedical Research Ethics Committee of the University of KwaZulu Natal (South Africa) (Ethics Number: BFC198/18).