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. 2022 Mar 30;14(3):e23645.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.23645. eCollection 2022 Mar.

Association Between Low Back Pain and Body Mass Index in Pakistani Population: Analysis of the Software Bank Data

Ali Sarfraz Siddiqui  1 , Sidra Javed  2 , Shemila Abbasi  1 , Tanveer Baig  1 , Gauhar Afshan  3
Affiliations

Association Between Low Back Pain and Body Mass Index in Pakistani Population: Analysis of the Software Bank Data

Ali Sarfraz Siddiqui et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Background: Obesity is a growing public health concern and is one of the leading causes of human suffering and disability worldwide. The number of overweight and obese people is dramatically increasing, and local data showed that low back pain (LBP) is more common in people with obesity, prolonged sitting jobs, psychological disorders, and lack of exercise.

Methods: This study was conducted in a cohort of 300 adult patients of either gender who visited a pain management clinic with LBP. Patient data were retrieved from the hospital software program and recorded in a pre-designed proforma. The data included the patient's age, gender, weight, height, BMI, comorbidities, site of pain, duration of pain, distribution of pain, severity of pain, history of spinal trauma, previous spinal surgery, and working diagnosis.

Results: Out of 300 patients with LBP, 185 (61.7 %) were female and 115 (38.3%) were male, of these, 224 (74.6%) were overweight or obese. One hundred and three (34.3%) had axial back pain and 197 (65.7%) patients had lumbar radicular pain. Linear regression analysis showed that 17% variability in pain scores in both genders can be explained by the increase in BMI. There is a statistically significant relationship, i.e. P=0.0005, exists between pain score and BMI.

Conclusion: This study showed the strong association between obesity and LBP in the Pakistani population. Approximately, 75% were overweight or obese in our LBP population-based cohort and this association was stronger among women than men.

Keywords: body mass index; low back pain; lumbar radicular pain; obesity; public health.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Comparison of mean NRS pain score among BMI categories
NRS: numerical rating pain score
Figure 2
Figure 2. Association of mean pain score and body mass index (n=300)
NRS: numerical rating pain score
Figure 3
Figure 3. Association of mean pain score and body mass index according to pain distribution (n=300)
NRS: numerical rating pain score
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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