STUDY DESIGN A prospective cohort study of patients with subacute occupational back pain. OBJECTIVES To study the relation between a marketed opto-electric device measuring trunk kinematics, a widely used specific functional capacity questionnaire, and work status in back pain patients, and to assess the responsiveness to change in work status of the opto-electric device and the questionnaire...

BACKGROUND The prevalence of self-reported low back pain among professional cooks was estimated to examine the effects of daily life conditions, job-related factors, and psychological factors on this disorder. METHODS Data was collected using a mailed self-administered questionnaire. RESULTS Of 7100 cooks, 5835 (82%) replied to the questionnaire, including 1010 men and 4825 women. The mean ...

BACKGROUND Low back pain (LBP) is common in children and adolescents, and it is becoming a public health concern. In recent years there has been a considerable increase in research studies that examine the prevalence of LBP in this population, but studies exhibit great variability in the prevalence rates reported. The purpose of this research was to examine, by means of a meta-analytic investig...

BACKGROUND Catastrophizing plays an important role in models of pain chronicity, showing a consistent correlation with both pain intensity and disability. It is conceivable that these associations are mediated or confounded by other psychological attributes. OBJECTIVE To examine the relative influence of catastrophizing and other psychological variables on pain and disability in patients with...

Despite an elusive pathophysiology, common characteristics are often observed in individuals with chronic low back pain (LBP). These include psychological symptoms, altered pain perception, altered pain modulation and altered muscle activation. These factors have been explored as possible determinants of disability, either separately or in cross-sectional studies, but were never assessed in a s...

BACKGROUND Lower back pain (LBP) is one of the primary causes of disability in the Canadian community. However, only a limited number of studies have addressed the association between daily smoking and LBP in Canada. Of the studies that have explored this association, many had small sample sizes and failed to control for confounders. OBJECTIVE The primary objective of the study was to determi...

The aim of the present study was to investigate the psychometric properties and validate the Portuguese version of the Fear Avoidance Beliefs Questionnaire (FABQ-Brazil). This instrument assesses how beliefs and fear of individuals with lower back pain affect two subscales related to their physical activities (FABQ-Phys) and work (FABQ-Work). The questionnaire was translated into Brazilian Port...

BACKGROUND The objective of this exploratory study was to identify patient-related predictors of communication preferences in patients with chronic low back pain for various dimensions of patient-physician communication (patient participation and orientation, effective and open communication, emotionally supportive communication, communication about personal circumstances). METHODS Eleven reh...

OBJECTIVES To assess if the implementation of guidelines for occupational rehabilitation of patients with low back pain by means of process variables--a set of objective criteria for technical performance and continuity of care--led to a better outcome in clinical and return to work variables. METHODS The study group consisted of 59 patients with at least 10 days of sick leave because of low ...

BACKGROUND Low back pain (LBP) occurrence and intensity are considered to fluctuate over time, requiring frequent repetitive assessments to capture its true time pattern. Text messages makes frequent reporting of LBP feasible, which enables investigation of 1) the time pattern of LBP, and 2) predictors for having a continued high (chronic) level of LBP over longer periods of time. However, this...