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. 2021 Mar 10;6(Suppl 3):2-14.
doi: 10.25646/7855. eCollection 2021 Mar.

Prevalence of back and neck pain in Germany. Results from the BURDEN 2020 Burden of Disease Study

Elena von der Lippe  1 , Laura Krause  1 , Michael Porst  1 , Annelene Wengler  1 , Janko Leddin  1 , Anja Müller  1 , Marie-Luise Zeisler  1 , Aline Anton  1 , Alexander Rommel  1 ; BURDEN 2020 study group
Affiliations

Prevalence of back and neck pain in Germany. Results from the BURDEN 2020 Burden of Disease Study

Elena von der Lippe et al. J Health Monit. .

Abstract

Back and neck pain are widespread and can significantly reduce quality of life. A cross-sectional telephone survey (N=5,009) was carried out between October 2019 and March 2020 to gain a valid estimate of the prevalence of back and neck pain among adults in Germany. In addition to the frequency and intensity of back and neck pain, the study collected information about quality of life and comorbidity. The findings showed that 61.3% of respondents reported back pain in the last twelve months. Lower back pain was reported about twice as often as upper back pain, with 15.5% of respondents stating that they experienced chronic back pain. 45.7% reported neck pain, and 15.6% of respondents have experienced lower and upper back pain in addition to neck pain in the past year. Women are affected by all types of pain more often than men. About half of the respondents categorise their back or neck pain as moderate; older respondents report significantly more pain episodes per month than younger respondents. The results described here provide a comprehensive picture of the population-related limitations associated with back and neck pain and are used within the framework of the BURDEN 2020 study to quantify key indicators of burden of disease calculation.

Keywords: ADULTS; BACK PAIN; BURDEN OF DISEASE; COMORBIDITIES; NECK PAIN.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of interest The authors declared no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Schematic representation of the collection of data on back and/or neck pain Source: Study of head, back and neck pain in Germany (2019/2020)
Figure 2
Figure 2
Proportion of adults with back or neck pain within the last twelve months by sex and age (n=2,634 women, n=2,375 men) Source: Study on head, back and neck pain in Germany (2019/2020)
Figure 3
Figure 3
Proportion of adults with back or neck pain and comorbidities within the last twelve months by sex (n=2,634 women, n=2,375 men) Source: Study of head, back and neck pain in Germany (2019/2020)
Figure 4
Figure 4
Average frequency of back and neck pain episodes in affected individuals by age and sex (days/month) (back pain: n=1,605 women, n=1,280 men; neck pain: n=1,289 women, n=810 men) Source: Study on head, back and neck pain in Germany (2019/2020)
Figure 5
Figure 5
Intensity of back and neck pain by age and sex (Back pain: n=1,605 women, n=1,280 men; neck pain: n=1,289 women, n=810 men) Source: Study on head, back and neck pain in Germany (2019/2020)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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