Articles: low-back-pain.
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J Spinal Disord Tech · Feb 2004
Correlation between backpack weight and way of carrying, sagittal and frontal spinal curvatures, athletic activity, and dorsal and low back pain in schoolchildren and adolescents.
This cross-sectional study was carried out to investigate any correlation between backpack carrying, spinal curvatures, and athletic activities on schoolchildren's dorsal (DP) and low back pain (LBP). Three thousand four hundred forty-one students aged from 9 to 15 years who carried backpacks to school were included in this study and asked for DP and LBP experiences in the school period while carrying the backpack. Nonradiating methods (surface back contour analysis) were used to indirectly measure frontal spinal curve (scoliosis) with the scoliometer and lateral curves (thoracic kyphosis and lumbar lordosis) with the kyphometer. ⋯ The peak in pain prevalence was immediately before puberty as well as immediately after its onset. Girls who participated in sports activities seem to experience more often DP and LBP than boys. Short children who carry backpacks as heavy as do tall children at the same age are more prone to LBP.
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The Functional Rating Index (FRI) was developed to provide an assessment instrument which has not only clinical usefulness but also quantifies the patient's current state of pain and dysfunction in a reliable and valid manner for spinal conditions. There is no study on the FRI applied to older people with low back pain (LBP). The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the validity and reliability of the FRI in older people with LBP. ⋯ In this preliminary report, the FRI appears to be easy to administer, seems to have significant validity and reliability, and may be useful in geriatric assessment of older people with LBP.
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Clinical observation suggests a frequent coincidence of back pain (BP) and fibromyalgia (FMA). Based on data from a population survey on back pain we studied the hypothesis of FMA being a frequent underlying condition of BP. We additionally studied the association of the severity of back pain and both chronic widespread musculoskeletal pain and active tender points. ⋯ Our data do not support the hypothesis of FMA as a frequent underlying condition of BP. We found, however, a close correlation between BP grade (and amount of distress) and tender points count. More severe forms of BP imply an increasing allodynia/hyperalgesia, itself being associated with a higher amount of somatic and psychological distress (Chronic severe) back pain seems to be more than simply pain in the back.
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The lumbar spine is a common location for osteoarthritis. The axial skeleton demonstrates the same classic alterations of cartilage loss, joint instability, and osteophytosis characteristic of symptomatic disease in the appendages. Despite these similarities, questions remain regarding the lumbar spine facet joints as a source of chronic back pain. ⋯ Single photon emission computed tomography scans of the axial skeleton are able to identify painful facet joints with increased activity that may be helped by local anesthetic injections. Low back pain is responsive to therapies that are effective for osteoarthritis in other locations. Osteoarthritis of the lumbar spine does cause low back pain.