Back pain? Blame the psoas. Seems as if everybody wants to dive headfirst into their psoas at the first sign of trouble with the lumbopelvic-hip region. Perhaps no other muscle is blamed more for causing problems than the psoas. Yes, it is an important stabilizer of the lumbar spine, but it shouldn't be the only one on which you focus. There is another big player on the scene: the iliacus.
Ernesto Leal-Junior, PhD, DPT
Dr. Ernesto Leal-Junior, a full professor at Nove de Julho University in Sao Paulo, Brazil, is a peer reviewer for six different journals including Lasers in Medical Science, theJournal of Sports Sciences, the Journal of Photochemistry, and Photochemistry and Photobiology. He has lectured at Unilsalle University and the University of Caxias do Sul, both in Brazil, and has presented more than 40 scientific papers at national and international congresses. His expert area of research is phototherapy in skeletal muscle disorders, with a special interest in phototherapy for skeletal muscle fatigue delaying, performance enhancement, injury prevention and recovery after strenuous physical activity. In September 2011, Dr. Leal Junior was awarded the Young Clinical Research Award in Phototherapy by the North American Association of Laser Therapy.