One-year prognosis in sick-listed low back pain patients with and without radiculopathy. Prognostic factors influencing pain and disability

Background contextPrevious research has documented various psychosocial risk factors with influence on outcome in low back pain (LBP) patients, but the value of clinical predictors has been less well documented.PurposeTo identify clinical and psychosocial risk factors at baseline influencing disability and pain at 1 year in LBP patients sick-listed 3 to 16 weeks, and to look for differences between nonspecific LBP and radiculopathy.Study designCohort study with 1-year follow-up based on a randomized clinical trial.Outcome measuresDisability and change of disability, pain and change in pain at 1 year.MethodsIn a randomized clinical study evaluating multidisciplinary versus brief intervention, 325 patients were followed for 1 year. At baseline, they completed a questionnaire and went through a clinical low back examination, including measure of forward flexion and side flexion as well as tender point examination, a method to estimate diffuse tenderness. Furthermore, degenerative changes on plain X-rays of the lumbar spine were quantified, and sciatica was investigated by magnetic resonance imaging.ResultsRadiculopathy was verified by magnetic resonance imaging in 111 (34%) patients. At 1 year, questions of disability in daily life activities and pain were answered by 60% and 67%, respectively. The intensity of back+leg pain and disability was closely correlated. Statistically significant predictors for both disability and back+leg pain at 1 year were intensity of back+leg pain, worrying and health anxiety, many tender points, and little or moderate exercise in leisure time. Two additional risk factors were identified in patients with radiculopathy: older age and “drinking alcohol less than once per month.” Furthermore, disability at 1 year was associated with initial disability and compensation claim, and back+leg pain at 1 year was associated with fear avoidance about physical activity and the duration of pain. Change in disability was more closely associated with return to work than change in pain. Disc degeneration was not associated with disability or pain at 1 year. General health was not statistically significantly associated with outcome when adjusted for back+leg pain, disability, and worrying and health anxiety.ConclusionsDisability and pain at 1 year were associated with baseline disability and pain, diffuse tenderness, worrying and health anxiety, compensation claim, fear avoidance, and baseline exercise habits. Only in patients with verified nerve root affection, older age, and restrained alcohol seemed to play a role. The multivariate models were insufficient in predicting disability and pain, partly because disability and pain were also strongly associated with return to work.     

Objective clinical evaluation of physical impairment in chronic low back pain.

The aim of this study was to investigate physical impairment in patients with chronic low back pain, to develop a method of clinical evaluation suitable for routine use, and to consider the relationship between pain, disability, and physical impairment. Twenty-seven physical tests were investigated. Permanent anatomic and structural impairments of spinal deformities, spinal fractures, surgical scarring, and neurologic deficits were excluded as not relevant to the patient with low back pain in the absence of nerve root involvement or previous surgery. Three consecutive 20-patient reproducibility studies were used to develop reliable methods of examination for 23 of the tests. Only four tests were excluded as unreliable: sacral angle, pelvic tilt, and separate lumbar and pelvic extension, none of which are part of routine clinical examination or have any proven relationship to disability. The remaining 23 physical tests were evaluated in 70 asymptomatic subjects and 120 patients with chronic low back pain. Passive knee flexion, passive hip flexion, hip flexion strength, hip abduction strength, pain reproduction on each of these tests, and the prone extension strength test were excluded because they were too closely related to nonorganic and behavioral responses to examination. Eight tests successfully discriminated patients with low back pain from normal subjects and were significantly related to self-report disability in activities of daily living: pelvic flexion, total flexion, total extension, lateral flexion, straight leg raising, spinal tenderness, bilateral active straight leg raising, and sit-up. Factor analysis failed to demonstrate an underlying statistical dimension of physical impairment. However, an empirical combination of total flexion, total extension, average lateral flexion, average straight leg raising, spinal tenderness, bilateral active straight leg raising, and sit-up provided an equally satisfactory alternative. Simple cut-offs from normal subjects made the scale simple and quick to use. This final scale successfully discriminated 78% of patients and normal subjects and explained 25% of the variance of disability, with a specificity of 86% and sensitivity of 76%. This scale provides an objective clinical evaluation that meets the criteria for evaluating physical impairment, yet is simple, reliable, and suitable for routine clinical use. It should, however, be emphasized that all the tests included in the final scale are measures of current functional limitation rather than of permanent anatomic or structural impairment. This raises questions about the physical basis of permanent disability due to chronic low back pain.     

Socioeconomic factors and disability retirement from back pain: a 1983-1993 population-based prospective study in Norway

STUDY DESIGN: A prospective observational study with an 11-year follow-up period was performed. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the influence of education and socioeconomic position on the incidence of permanent disability retirement from back pain. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: Early retirement because of back pain is the extreme end point of a disabling process that is a great burden to the individual and costly for the society. Groups of employees at particular risk for permanent back pain disability need to be identified. METHODS: All employed men and women in Norway between the ages of 20 and 53 years in 1980 were included (n = 1,333,556). Outcome measures were disability retirement from inflammatory back pain (ICD-9 code 720) and noninflammatory back pain (ICD-9 codes 721 to 724). RESULTS: The 11-year cumulative incidence was 0.15% (n = 1990) for disability retirement from inflammatory back pain and 1. 64% (n = 21,829) for noninflammatory back pain and was somewhat higher in women than in men. Each year of formal education was independently associated with decreased risk for disability retirement from noninflammatory back pain (odds ratio [OR] = 0.78; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.77-0.79) and from inflammatory back pain (OR = 0.83; 95% CI = 0.81-0.86). Whereas disability from inflammatory back pain was moderately associated with socioeconomic status, there was a consistent upward trend in the association between disability retirement from noninflammatory back pain and lower socioeconomic position. The OR for unskilled workers was 3.1 (95% CI = 2.6-3.7) for men and 2.1 (95% CI = 1.7-2.5) for women, as compared with that of higher professionals. Stepwise analyses suggest that the effect of education is not mediated by socioeconomic status. CONCLUSIONS: The consistent upward trend in the relation of disability retirement to lower levels of education and socioeconomic position, even for inflammatory back pain, shows that factors related to the occupational and social environment play an important role in the disabling process. The stepwise, monotonic relation between socioeconomic position and disability retirement from back pain, even at the higher end of the socioeconomic scale, suggests that the relation between social class and back pain disability cannot be explained solely in terms of manual versus nonmanual jobs.     

Posterior lumbar interbody fusion. Association between disability and psychological disturbance in noncompensation patients.

STUDY DESIGN: An observational study of the relation between disability and psychological distress in patients with no on-going compensation claim who underwent posterior lumbar interbody fusion for chronic low back pain. OBJECTIVES: To study the change in the relation between disability and psychological distress after surgical management for low back pain. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: Patient-related factors such as an on-going compensation claim and patient psychology are thought to influence the outcome of low back pain management. METHODS: Of the 58 patients who underwent posterior lumbar interbody fusion for low back pain between 1990 and 1995, 53 were observed for a mean duration of 2.7 years after surgery. Oswestry Disability scores and Distress and Risk Assessment Method scores were collected before surgery and at the follow-up examination. RESULTS: Improvement of 10 points on the Oswestry Disability Score was observed in 52.8% of the patients. However, the results in patients who were distressed before surgery were similar to the results observed in healthy patients. The difference in the Oswestry Disability Scores was 3.1 (95% confidence intervals [-9.9, 16.2], P = 0.297). The change in Distress and Risk Assessment Method scores showed a significant relation to change in the Oswestry Disability Scores (P = 0.033). CONCLUSIONS: Postoperative improvement in disability was not found to be related to preoperative psychology as measured by the Distress and Risk Assessment Method score. Change in disability is significantly related to change in distress.     

A controlled, prospective study to evaluate the effectiveness of a back school in the relief of chronic low back pain

Ninety-two chronic low back pain patients were randomly allocated to two groups to evaluate the effectiveness of a back school compared with an exercise-only regimen according to specified outcome variables. The data from 78 patients with 7 years mean duration of symptoms was analyzed. Three assessments were made: before treatment and 6 and 16 weeks after treatment. Changes in patients' levels of pain, functional disability, and other related variables were compared in the two groups. Almost all variables showed an improvement at 6 weeks. At 16 weeks, functional disability and pain levels showed a significant difference. Back school patients continued to make an improvement. This method of managing low back pain makes maximal use of limited resources and appears to be effective, especially in the longer term.     

Assessing outcome in lumbar disc surgery using patient completed measures

Measuring outcome after spinal surgery is difficult. The objective of this study was to assess the use of four measures in establishing outcome in patients undergoing lumbar discectomy. Forty-six consecutive patients who had undergone two operations for lumbar disc prolapse and 54 patients who had undergone one operation for the same condition over the same period were identified. The SF-36 questionnaire was used to assess general health. The Roland-Morris questionnaire and a simple modification of the Roland-Morris questionnaire were used to assess back and leg related disability, respectively. Analogue pain scales were used to measure back pain and sciatica. The SF-36 scores revealed significantly worse health status in the two operation compared with the one operation patients and in all patients compared with the normal population. Using the Roland-Morris and the leg disability questionnaires, patients who had undergone two operations reported significantly worse disability (Roland-Morris, 53%, poor outcome) than those who had undergone one operation (Roland-Morris, 19%, poor outcome). There was significantly greater back disability than leg disability in both groups of patients and this was confirmed by the analogue pain scales. In patients who had undergone two operations, 25% classified their back pain as very bad or unbearable, and 22.5% described very bad or unbearable leg pain. For the one operation patients these figures were 9.5 and 2.4%, respectively. The results demonstrate that both generic and condition specific patient completed measures have the potential to detect differences in outcome between patients who have undergone either one or two lumbar disc operations. The study provides support for the use of these patient completed measures in assessing outcome in lumbar disc surgery.     

Correlation of objective measure of trunk motion and muscle function with low-back disability ratings

A study was undertaken to examine relations among some objective and subjective measures of low-back-related disability in a group of 41 low-back pain patients and in seven pain-free control subjects. Subjective measures of disability were obtained by Oswestry patient questionnaires. Oswestry disability score related significantly (P less than 0.001) to presence or absence of relaxation in back muscles during flexion. Mean trunk strength ratios were inversely related to disability score (P less than .05), and trunk mobility was meaningfully reduced (P less than .01). Despite loss of motion, a large enough excursion was observed to predict presence of back muscle relaxation. These findings imply that myoelectric signal levels, trunk strength ratios, and ranges of trunk motion may be used as objective indicators of low-back pain disability.     

A cross-sectional study correlating lumbar spine degeneration with disability and pain

STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional design. OBJECTIVES: To investigate the correlation between degeneration in the lumbar spine and self-reported disability and pain levels in patients with and without a history of trauma. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: The link between lumbar spine degeneration and low back pain remains controversial, as does the correlation between trauma and spinal degeneration. METHODS: Radiographic and questionnaire data were collected from 172 consecutive patients with low back pain. Back pain severity was measured using two scales: one for pain over the entire episode and one for pain during the previous week. All patients also completed the Revised Oswestry Disability Questionnaire before radiography was performed. Further questions concerning the chronicity of symptoms and trauma were included. RESULTS: Controlling for age, patients with low back pain with a history of trauma had a statistically significant increase in the severity of facet degeneration (P < 0.02) compared with nontrauma patients with low back pain. However, there was no difference in disability and pain scores between the trauma and nontrauma patients or between the genders. A weak correlation between pain severity ratings and the number of levels of degeneration and the severity of the degeneration at the disc and facets was noted. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with low back pain with a history of trauma had more severe facet arthrosis than do nontrauma patients with low back pain, but there were no differences in pain and disability. There was a weak correlation between the quantity and severity of lumbar degeneration with pain levels, but not with disability scores. These findings are discussed in the light of recent reports regarding the cervical spine.     

The influence of intense exercise-based physical therapy program on back pain anticipated before and induced by physical activities.

BACKGROUND CONTEXT: Pain anticipated before and induced by physical activities has been shown to influence the physical performance of patients with chronic back pain. Limited data exist as to the influence of treatment on this component of pain. PURPOSE: This study attempted to determine if pain anticipated before and induced by physical activities was altered during an exercise-oriented physical therapy program for chronic back pain. STUDY DESIGN/SETTING: Subjects were recruited from three physical therapy sites with similar spine rehabilitation programs that used intense exercise delivered in a group format. During the recruitment period, 70 subjects with chronic low back pain and disability agreed to participate and complied with recommended treatments. The primary outcome measures were anticipated and induced pain as assessed by visual analog scales (VAS) during six tests of back flexibility and strength. Additional outcome measures included the performance levels of these six tests (trunk flexion, extension, straight leg raising, back strength, lifting from floor to waist and waist to shoulder height), global back and leg VAS and Oswestry Low Back Pain Disability Questionnaire scores. METHODS: At evaluation for the spine rehabilitation programs, we recorded the anticipated and induced pain levels associated with the six tests of back function, the performance levels on each test and global pain and disability scores. Subjects then participated in the spine rehabilitation program that consisted of intense exercise delivered up to three times per week, for 2 hours over a period of 6 weeks. All outcome measures were reassessed at discharge. Pre- and posttreatment outcome scores were statistically compared using paired sample t tests and chi-squared test. Spearman correlation coefficients were used to compare anticipated and induced pain results with global back and leg pain VAS scores, Oswestry scores and physical performance levels for each physical test. RESULTS: Most measures of anticipated and induced pain improved between evaluation and discharge. Improvements were noted for global back pain (p<.001), leg pain (p=.001), disability (p<.001) and performance on each physical testing (p<.001) after treatment. Performances on all physical testing correlated with anticipated and induced pain for all tests at evaluation but only for measures of flexibility at discharge. Improvements in global pain and disability correlated with improvements in anticipated and induced pain with physical testing. CONCLUSION: Anticipated and induced pain with physical activities was lessened after physical therapy using exercise. Anticipated and induced pain with physical activities related to physical performance levels, global pain and disability ratings. These findings may help explain how exercise exerts a positive influence on chronic back pain and disability.     

Evaluation of low back pain by patient questionnaires and therapist assessment

Paper completed by D.J.B. and J.V.B. in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Science Degree, Physical Therapy, University of Southern California, Presented at the 63rd Annual Conference, American Physical Therapy Association. June, 1987. The purposes of this study were to determine reliability and validity of history and disability questionnaires completed by 165 low back pain patients; agreement between those questionnaires and a physical therapy assessment was determined. The short term repeatability of the patient-completed questionnaires was 89% and 87%, respectively, while agreement between the two therapists was 75%. Validity of the disability questionnaire was demonstrated. It was not related to epidemiological indicators and had significant agreement with only five out of nine related therapist history items. The patient history questionnaire had an overall agreement of 76% (range 67-93%) with five therapist history items. The pain rating scale was a less reliable index of disability than was the disability score. Physical findings were related to disability statements dealing with flexion and gait. These results suggest the disability questionnaire can be used on North American samples. While use of the three evaluation tools will give a more complete picture of the patient's status, modifications are suggested to increase their usefulness in assessment of patients with low back pain. Further testing is needed to show their utility in prediction of low back pain outcome. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 1990;11(11):519-529.     

椎间盘内亚甲蓝注射治疗终板源性腰痛的临床观察

目的评价椎间盘内亚甲蓝注射用于治疗慢性椎间盘终板源性腰痛的临床效果。方法对腰痛的持续时间>12个月的5例慢性终板源性腰痛患者经椎间盘造影后,行椎间盘内亚甲蓝注射。主要判断标准包括:根据疼痛视觉模拟量表(visual analog scale,VAS)评分评价疼痛减轻程度以及根据Oswestry功能障碍指数(Oswestry disabilityindex,ODI)评估功能改善程度。结果平均15.6个月随访患者腰痛改善率为52%,功能改善率为46.4%。其满意率为80%。结论椎间盘内注射亚甲蓝治疗椎间盘终板源性腰痛是一个安全、有效、微创的方法。     

Predictors of low back pain disability

Low back pain has major socioeconomic implications; much of the costs relate to disability and compensation. Theoretically, the early identification of patients at risk to become disabled from a low back episode would lead to more aggressive intervention and reduction of subsequent disability. Low back disability is related to occupational, psychosocial, diagnostic, demographic, anthropometric, health behavior, and injury factors that have been reported in the literature. The multiattribute utility model is a new experimental approach to prediction of disability. The relative weights of the various factors that might be predictive of low back disability are determined by a panel of experts. Although this model is not yet scientifically proven, it offers a promising method of answering the question, "Can low back disability be predicted?"     

A stiff and straight back preoperatively is associated with a good outcome 2 years after lumbar disc surgery: A prospective study of 80 patients

Background and purpose The degree of lumbar lordosis and reduced lumbar mobility are regarded as important clinical features in patients with low back pain, and in lumbar disc herniation A more stiff back preoperatively in a proportion of patients has been shown to be associated with sequestered disc herniation. The main aim of this study was to investigate whether there was any correlation between lumbar lordosis and flexion on the one hand in patients with lumbar disc herniation who were scheduled for surgery, and postoperative pain and disability on the other. Our second aim was to determine the patterns of postoperative improvement in pain, perceived disability, and flexion/lordosis for 2 years after surgery.Methods Pain (VAS), disability (DRI), lumbar flexion and lordosis (Debrunner''s kyfometer) were measured pre- and postoperatively in 80 patients who underwent microscopic lumbar disc surgery.Results Patients with preoperative hyperlordosis had more severe pain and more disability postoperatively than patients with hypolordosis. The level of pain did not change much from 2–6 weeks postoperatively until 2 years, while the perceived disability did not reach a steady state until 6 months after surgery.Interpretation Patients with a stiff and flat back have a good prognosis after lumbar disc surgery, and in most cases the pain will reach the 2-year level during the first 2–6 weeks, while the physical restoration measured by the lumbar flexion and lordosis, and the perceived disability, will continue to improve over the first 6 months after surgery.     

Epidural neuroplasty versus physiotherapy to relieve pain in patients with sciatica: a prospective randomized blinded clinical trial

Background Epidural neuroplasty seems to be one of the promising minimally invasive techniques for adhesiolysis in patients with chronic sciatica with or without low back pain. However, because no data exist from randomized studies the aim was to investigate whether this procedure is superior to conservative treatment with physiotherapy. Methods A total of 99 patients with chronic low back pain were enrolled in this study and randomly assigned into either a group with physiotherapy (n = 52) or a second group undergoing epidural neuroplasty (n = 47). Patients were assessed before and 3, 6, and 12 months after treatment by a blinded investigator. Results After 3 months, the visual analog scale (VAS) score for back and leg pain was significantly reduced in the epidural neuroplasty group, and the need for pain medication was reduced in both groups. Furthermore, the VAS for back and leg pain as well as the Oswestry disability score were significantly reduced until 12 months after the procedure in contrast to the group that received conservative treatment. Conclusions Epidural neuroplasty results in significant alleviation of pain and functional disability in patients with chronic low back pain and sciatica based on disc protrusion/prolapse or failed back surgery on a short-term basis as well as at 12 months of follow-up.     

终板源性腰痛的诊断和外科治疗分析

目的探讨严重终板源性腰痛的诊断和外科治疗方法。方法所有患者行影像学检查,并用腰椎间盘造影术确定疼痛椎间隙融合节段。用视觉疼痛模拟评分（VAS）和Oswestry功能障碍问卷调查表,对每个患者术前和术后的腰痛症状和腰椎功能障碍指数（ODI）分别评分,评估腰椎融合术疗效。结果本组21例患者,经腰椎间盘造影术诊断为终板源性腰痛,全部行腰椎前路或后路融合术。术后随访2—6年,平均3年5个月。除1例仍有腰痛外,其余20例（95％）腰痛症状明显改善或完全消失,腰椎物理功能明显改善。VAS和ODI评分在术前和术后的比较,差异有统计学意义（P=0．0001）。结论研究表明腰椎间盘造影术是诊断终板源性腰痛的可靠手段,腰椎融合术是治疗终板源性腰痛的有效方法。     

The psoas muscle as cause of low back pain in infantile cerebral palsy

Psoas muscle spasticity is hypothesised as a rare cause of low back pain in patients with infantile cerebral palsy. The authors describe a new manoeuvre for the study of psoas tenderness and ultrasound (US)-guided transabdominal botulinum toxin injection technique. A possible causal relationship between psoas tension and low back pain was found incidentally in two examined cases. In subsequent patients, botulinum toxin was injected and, in cases of disappearance of symptoms, the psoas tendon was sectioned at the pelvic brim with definitive disappearance of pain. The relationship between psoas tension and low back pain in patients with infantile cerebral palsy seems likely, given the result in the four patients.     

腰椎间盘突出症疼痛症状与治疗选择

在一组220例连续的腰椎间盘突出患者,评估了其腰腿痛的程度并探讨了影响临床治疗选择的因素。对每例患者采集临床特征因素。分别予以赋值后,用计算机行单因素直线相关,多元直线回归和多元逐步回归分析。结果表明:在所有三种分析中,休息时疼痛,疼痛加重因素,椎间隙压痛和直腿抬高试验是影响治疗选择的主要因素。患者有休息时疼痛,有疼痛加重因素,椎间隙有压痛并放射,直腿抬高试验小于30°时更倾向于手术治疗。     

Reliability and validity of Punjabi version of Oswestry Disability Index in patients with mechanical low back pain

ObjectiveOswestry disability Index(ODI) is the commonest patient reported outcome for assessment of disability due to low back pain. Its application to non-English speaking Punjabi population is limited as a validated and cross culturally adapted Punjabi version of ODI is not available. The purpose of the study was to analyse the psychometric properties of Punjabi version of Oswestry disability index (ODI-P) in patients with mechanical low back pain.Materials and methodsThe translation and cross-cultural adaptation of Punjabi version of ODI was done according to well recommended guidelines. The prefinal version was tested on a set of 15 patients and suitable modifications were made. The final version was administered to 113 patients with mechanical low back pain of more than two weeks duration. Psychometric properties comprising of internal consistency, test retest reliability, floor and ceiling effect, construct validity and factorial structure of the questionnaire were determined.ResultsODI-P showed excellent internal consistency (Chronbach alpha of ODI-P is 0.72), test retest reliability (ICC 0.891) and construct validity (Spearman correlation coefficient with VAS 0.424). Factor analysis proved the questionnaire to be having a 1-factor structure with a total variance of 48.61%.ConclusionsODI (P) is a reliable and valid instrument for measurement of disability related to mechanical low back pain in Punjabi population. It can be used both in research and clinical care settings in future.