a. Effect of SMT on the production of IL-6 in LPS (1 μg/ml)-stimulated WB preparations from patients with acute and chronic LBP. Compared to asymptomatic controls, baseline levels of IL-6 were significantly elevated in both patient groups (P = 0.0003–0.003) (19). Post-SMT production of IL-6 declined significantly (P = 0.01) in patients with chronic LBP and did not differ significantly from that in asymptomatic controls tested 2 weeks after the initial (baseline) evaluation. b. Effect of SMT on the capacity for IL-2 production in WB cultures from patients with acute and chronic LBP. WB preparations from the studied subjects were cultured for 48 h in the presence of phytohemagglutinin (PHA) at a concentration of 10 μg/ml. At baseline, the levels of IL-2 production in both LBP patient groups were comparable with those in asymptomatic subjects (19). Following SMT, the production of IL-2 became significantly elevated in the acute LBP group compared with both asymptomatic controls tested at Time 2 (P = 0.001) and patients with chronic LBP (P = 0.004)
