Prevalence of acute low back pain with risk of long-term disability and its correlates among medical students: A cross-sectional study

Saket Shekhar; Rajath Rao; Santosh Kumar Nirala; Bijaya Nanda Naik; Chandramani Singh; Sanjay Pandey

doi:10.4103/jehp.jehp_1460_22

Prevalence of acute low back pain with risk of long-term disability and its correlates among medical students: A cross-sectional study

J Educ Health Promot. 2023 May 31:12:179. doi: 10.4103/jehp.jehp_1460_22. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Saket Shekhar¹, Rajath Rao², Santosh Kumar Nirala², Bijaya Nanda Naik², Chandramani Singh², Sanjay Pandey²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Community Medicine, Rama Medical College Hospital and Research Centre, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India.
² Department of Community and Family Medicine, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Patna, Bihar, India.

Abstract

Background: Low back pain (LBP) is responsible for the highest number of years lived with disability globally. There is a paucity of data regarding the same among medical students. So, this study was planned to estimate the prevalence of acute LBP having a high propensity to develop into chronic one as well as to determine associated correlates among medical students.

Materials and methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 300 medical students at a tertiary hospital using an Acute Low Back Pain Screening Questionnaire (ALBPSQ) to identify individuals with LBP and having a high risk of developing a long-term disability. ALBPSQ is a 21-question-based biopsychosocial screening instrument for identifying patients at risk of chronicity. ALBPSQ scores have been found to be significantly associated with pain and functional disability. Descriptive statistics, bivariate analysis, and multiple binary logistic regression have been performed through SPSS-22 software.

Results: The prevalence of LBP having the propensity to develop into a long-term disability was found to be 14.3% (95% CI: 10.6-18.8). In bivariate analysis, higher age, no exercise, higher screen time, mental stress, studying in bed, abnormal posture, alcohol intake, tobacco use, positive family history, greater screen time per day, and more time spent in a sitting posture are significant with LBP. Stress ((adjusted odds ratio) AOR: 4.37, 95% CI: 1.79-10.68)), abnormally bent standing posture (AOR: 3.6, 95% CI: 1.3-10.6), and positive family of LBP (AOR: 3.6, 95% CI: 1.3-10.1) were found to be independent predictors of LBP among medical students.

Conclusion: Among medical students, every 15 out of 100 have a low back problem with chances of long-term disability. These students require early intervention to avoid long-term disability. Abnormal stooping posture, psychological stress, and positive family history of low pain might independently lead to LBP.

Keywords: Cross-sectional studies; disability evaluation; low back pain; medical; risk factors; students.