Risk factors for chronic low back pain

Abstract

Chronic low back pain that last for more than 3 months affects an estimated 15-45% of the population and is the most common cause of disability in individuals between the ages of 45 and 65 years. It has a high morbidity with high social and economic effects. The studies done all over the world show that the prevalence of chronic low back pain is increasing. However the improvements in the understanding of the pathology and management of low back pain have not improved significantly over the years. Therefore having knowledge of risk factors for low back pain will help in the prevention of development of low back pain. Therefore a review of current literature regarding the risk factors for low back pain was carried out. According to majority of studies bad posture, lack of physical exercise, presence of low back pain related genes, low levels of education and poor nutrition had a significant association with low back pain. Few studies have found a significant association between low back pain and indulging in regular smoking, regular alcohol consumption, being overweight and underweight and low socio-economic background. However some studies have failed to find a significant association between these factors and low back pain