Low back pain or low back pain is a very common problem that is the main cause of disability worldwide, according to the World Health Organization, which indicates that 619 million people suffered from it in 2020 and estimates that the number of affected will rise to 843 million by 2050, mainly due to the aging of the population.
Repeated episodes of low back pain are also very common and seven out of 10 people who recover from an episode experience a recurrence within a year. Now, the results of a new study published in The Lancet offer hope in these cases, revealing that adults with a history of low back pain spent almost twice as long without back pain if they walked regularly.
Currently, to control and prevent back pain it is advisable to combine exercise and postural education, but not all types of exercise are accessible or affordable for many people due to their complexity and need for supervision, which also involves an economic outlay that does not It is available to all patients. However, walking is an activity suitable for any age and is very healthy, and it is also free.
A cost-effective option to reduce low back pain episodes
The Spinal Pain Research Group at Macquarie University conducted a clinical trial to evaluate whether walking could be an effective, cost-effective and accessible intervention. Researchers followed 701 adults who had recently recovered from an episode of low back pain for one to three years, randomly assigning participants to an individualized walking program and six educational sessions guided by a physical therapist over six months, or to a group of control.
The paper’s lead author, Macquarie University physiotherapy professor Mark Hancock, says the findings could have a profound impact on the way lower back pain is managed. “The intervention group had fewer cases of activity-limiting pain compared to the control group, and a longer average period before experiencing a recurrence, with a median of 208 days compared to 112 days,” he said. . “Walking is a simple, widely accessible and low-cost exercise that almost anyone can do, regardless of geographic location, age or socioeconomic status.”
“We don’t know exactly why walking is so good at helping prevent back pain, but it likely includes a combination of gentle oscillatory movements, loading and strengthening spinal structures and muscles, relaxation and stress relief, and release of ‘feel good’ endorphins. And of course, we also know that walking carries many other health benefits, including cardiovascular health, bone density, healthy weight and better mental health.”
“The intervention group had fewer cases of activity-limiting pain and a longer average period before experiencing a recurrence, with a median of 208 days compared to 112 days.”
The main author, Dr. Natasha Pocovi, has highlighted another of the great advantages of the program: “Not only did it improve people’s quality of life, but it also reduced their need to seek medical care and sick leave by around half.” . The exercise-based interventions to prevent back pain that have been explored above are typically group-based and require close clinical supervision and expensive equipment, making them much less accessible to most patients. “Our study has shown that this effective and accessible means of exercise has the potential to be successfully implemented on a much larger scale than other forms of exercise.”
To build on these findings, the team of researchers hopes to explore how they can integrate the preventative approach into the routine care of patients suffering from recurrent low back pain.
