Acute low back usually resolves quickly but persistent low back pain often persists

Acute low back usually resolves quickly but persistent low back pain often persists.

OBJECTIVE To review the evidence of clinical course of pain and disability in patients with acute and persistent low-back pain, and to investigate whether pain and disability had similar courses. DATA SOURCES MEDLINE, CINAHL and Embase databases were searched from 1950 to November, 2011. This search was supplemented by searching of reference lists from eligible studies. STUDY SELECTION Ince...

Persistent Low Back Pain

N Engl J Med 2005;352:1891-8. Copyright © 2005 Massachusetts Medical Society. A 49-year-old maintenance worker with a history of depression and previous reports of minor back pain is seen after four months of continuing low back pain. He has remained out of work for fear of worsening the injury. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) two weeks after the onset of pain showed only mild degenerative cha...

[Acute low back pain].

A focused history taking and physical examination directed toward uncovering signs that suggest a serious underlying cause of low back pain are crucial. "Red flags" include pain that lasts more than 6 weeks; pain in persons younger than 18 years or older than 50 years; pain that radiates below the knee; a history of major trauma; poor rectal tone; constitutional symptoms; atypical pain (eg, tha...

Acute low back pain.

Predicting the transition from acute to persistent low back pain.

BACKGROUND Most people experience low back pain (LBP) at least once in their lifetime. Only a minority of them go on to develop persistent LBP. However, the socioeconomic costs of persistent LBP significantly exceed the costs of the initial acute LBP episode. AIMS To identify factors that influence the progression of acute LBP to the persistent state at an early stage. METHODS Prospective i...