Global posture is a good indicator of general musculoskeletal health. Prevalence and incidence of musculoskeletal disorders and injuries, and in particular low back pain, is rapidly rising on a global scale. The tightness or spasm Quadratus Lumborum muscle is a common cause for non-specific low back pain and is also closely connected to postural deviations and faulty movement patterns. Having a more complete, holistic and encompassing view of postural deviations will give the clinician more information to put into the clinical reasoning process. A more efficient and effective treatment plan with long-term results is usually the result. We propose Global Posture Systems Therapeutic Pathways as possible solution to more effectively and efficiently treat musculoskeletal disorders and injuries. In this paper we explain the concept in more detail using a case of a chronically tight Quadratus Lumborum muscle that causes low back pain and functional issues. It is also the cause of important postural deviations. At the centre of the GPS Therapeutic Pathways concept lies a thorough static posture assessment. This provides the clinician information on which systems affect posture and how this affects an injury or injury risk. It forms the basis for choosing the right GPS Therapeutic Pathway. A first pathway focusses on autogenic relaxation, breathing techniques, myofascial release and stretching using the innovative therapeutic table, Mi.To./Sinthesi. In a second phase we stimulate pain modulation and cellular regeneration with a capacitive and resistive energy transfer technology, TCare. A third pathway assists the clinician in being able to suit each type of therapeutic exercise exactly to the patient’s needs using various configurations of suspension slings and pulleys; the Archimedes Pulley System with BlueCord Exercise System. Lastly new and healthy movement and posture patterns are integrated in every day living activities using a variety of proprioceptive and integrative exercise tools.

Conclusion: When comparing the before and after digital images recorded with the GPS Postural Lab we can clearly see improvement in the patient’s posture indicating that the chronically tight Quadratus Lumborum muscle has been effectively released and lengthened. We conclude that GPS Therapeutic Pathways is a very interesting concept that is cost-effective, able to be applied to many different types of neuromusculoskeletal disorders and can be integrated in modern rehabilitation and physical therapy centres.

Keywords: global posture, musculoskeletal injuries and disorders, poor posture, posture assessment, clinical reasoning, therapeutic pathways.