A team of scientists at the University of Sydney have been investigating why many treatments for low back pain, including medication, often do not give long term relief.
The randomised controlled trial looked at 346 people from across Australia – all had chronic (long-term) low back pain and at least one other lifestyle risk such as obesity, lack of exercise, smoking or poor diet. The participants were randomly spilt into two groups; the “Healthy Lifestyle Program” (HeLP) group or the standard guideline-based physiotherapy group.
The HeLP group received support from multiple specialists including physiotherapists, dieticians, and telephone health coaches who all helped them to identify which lifestyle habits maybe having a negative impact on their back pain. By identifying these factors they helped improve things like weight, or sleep, exercise, stopping smoking and reducing alcohol consumption.
After 6 months tHe HeLP group had low back pain scores and had lost more weight than the traditional physiotherapy alone group.
Professor Williams from the University of Sydney said “increasing numbers of studies have shown that pathologies like bulging discs and joint degeneration are rarely the cause of long-term back pain.” Too few people are “given support to focus on the things that influence long-term pain and disability.”
This study supports other studies that show a multimodal approach that includes advice, guidance exercise helps chronic low back pain (where there is no underlying disease).