Course and prognosis of recovery for chronic non-specific low back pain: design, therapy program and baseline data of a prospective cohort study.

K. Verkerk, P.A Luijsterberg, I. Ronchetti, H.S. Miedema, A.L. Pool-Goudzwaard, Jan Paul Wingerden, B. Koes

Research output: Contribution to JournalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract


BACKGROUND:
There has been increasing focus on factors predicting the development of chronic musculoskeletal disorders. For patients already experiencing chronic non-specific low back pain it is also relevant to investigate which prognostic factors predict recovery. We present the design of a cohort study that aims to determine the course and prognostic factors for recovery in patients with chronic non-specific low back pain.
METHODS/DESIGN:
All participating patients were recruited (Jan 2003-Dec 2008) from the same rehabilitation centre and were evaluated by means of (postal) questionnaires and physical examinations at baseline, during the 2-month therapy program, and at 5 and 12 months after start of therapy. The therapy protocol at the rehabilitation centre used a bio-psychosocial approach to stimulate patients to adopt adequate (movement) behaviour aimed at physical and functional recovery. The program is part of regular care and consists of 16 sessions of 3 hours each, over an 8-week period (in total 48 hours), followed by a 3-month self-management program. The primary outcomes are low back pain intensity, disability, quality of life, patient's global perceived effect of recovery, and participation in work. Baseline characteristics include information on socio-demographics, low back pain, employment status, and additional clinical items status such as fatigue, duration of activities, and fear of kinesiophobia. Prognostic variables are determined for recovery at short-term (5 months) and long-term (12 months) follow-up after start of therapy.
DISCUSSION:
In a routine clinical setting it is important to provide patients suffering from chronic non-specific low back pain with adequate information about the prognosis of their complaint.
Original languageEnglish
Article number22047019
Pages (from-to)252
Number of pages5
JournalBMC Musculoskeletal Disorders
Volumenov 2
Issue number12
Publication statusPublished - 2 Nov 2011

Keywords

  • low back pain

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