A new research reveals the different triggers that can cause acute low back pain. Fatigue, awkward positions, and distractions are identified as modifiable triggers by researchers from the University of Sydney.
The new study found out that certain physical and psychosocial factors that significantly may increase the risk for bouts of low back pain. The results of the study were published in the journal of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) entitled, Arthritis Care & Research. The study was pioneered by Professor Manuela Ferreira, an associate professor with the George Institute for Global Health and Sydney Medical School at The University of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia.
Their findings show that certain manual tasks that entail being in awkward positions may increase the risk of incurring low back pain as much as eight times. Furthermore, distractions during activities or fatigued may also significantly increase the risk for acute low back pain, as reported by Science Daily.
According to the World Health Organization, low back pain is the leading cause of disability worldwide. Also, they said that back pain is not a disease but a constellation of symptoms. However, the progress in its prevention may not be that comprehensive. Now, this study may have provided key modifiable factors that may trigger the onset of low back pain.
"Understanding which risk factors contribute to back pain and controlling exposure to these risks is an important first step in prevention. Our study is the first to examine brief exposure to a range of modifiable triggers for an acute episode of low back pain," explained Prof. Ferreira.
The researchers recruited about 999 participants from 300 primary care clinics in Sydney, Australia. These patients reported low back pain from October 2011 to November 2012. They were exposed to 12 physical or psychosocial factors or triggers in 96 hours before the onset of pain.
They found out that a new bout of low back pain increased because of variety of triggers. It ranged from around 3 times higher risk or chance following moderate to strenuous physical activity and about 25 times higher chance of back pain after being distracted in an activity. Our findings enhance knowledge of low back pain triggers and will assist the development of new prevention programs that can reduce suffering from this potentially disabling condition."
