Deployment and Risk Factors of Low Back Pain Among Iranian Soldiers

Risk factors for low back pain (LBP) among the deployed forces are still under shadow, while the consequences of LBP are already clarified. This study aimed to identify the LBP risk factors associated with deployment-related exposures. This study was conducted as a questionnaire-based cohort study, in which 3862 Iranian soldiers participated. Of the 1360 respondents, 350 (26%) reported LBP. The potential of nonresponse bias for the population of respondents was adjusted and the relationships between explanatory variables and LBP were analyzed using models of ordinal logistic regression. After the adjustment of all other variables, older age (P = 0.016), support from leaders (odds ratio (OR) = 1.69, P = 0.019), psychological stress (OR = 1.71, P = 0.009), working in depots or storehouses (OR = 2.60, P = 0.041), and awkward working positions (OR = 1.98, P = 0.001) were found to be associated with LBP. Maneuver and traffic accidents, sport or exposure to work, and lifestyle were not associated with LBP in this study, which was the result of the actual deployment only. In this study older age, lack of support from leaders, psychological stress, awkward working positions, and working in depots or storehouses were significantly associated with LBP after the adjustment of all other variables. Preventive measures should include predeployment preparation of leaders to cope with LBP and other musculoskeletal troubles among their subordinates and involve trained medical staff and specialized physiotherapists, advising soldiers of different military occupational specialties on how to optimize ergonomics at work