low back pain and quality of life among students studying in west branch of azad university in tehran, iran.

introduction: quality of life play a considerable role in individual and social health. low back pain is the most common musculoskeletal disorders and cause negative impacts on various aspects of life. the aim of study was to compare the quality of life of students with and without low back pain.  materials and methods: this was across-sectional study performed among students at the faculty of humanities, islamic azad university, west branch in tehran., iran. 200 students took part in the study and the sf-36scale was used to assess the quality of life of the participants.  findings: the mean score of overall quality of life, physical, and mental health of the participants were 67.87 19.07, 72.3621.53, and 63.20 21.34 respectively. there was a significant relationship between quality of life and socio-economic status (p = 0.007), physical activity (p = 0.002) and smoking (p = 0.007). about %60/3of all participants (n=114) reported back pain history. there were significant relationship between quality of life and low back pain (p = 0.0001). quality of life in students with back pain was less than those without back pain.  conclusion: considering the underlying factors affecting the quality of life of students, this study showed low back pain could also diminish the quality of life of the students