Psychosocial Background of Disability in Patients with Chronic Low Back Pain

Objectives: To assess the impact psychosocial factors on pain intensity and disability in patients with chronic LBP. Subjects: This is a cross sectional descriptive study. Thirty adult patients complaining of low back pain which lasts more than six months, of mechanical origin (confirmed with radiological diagnosis), were randomly recruited from rheumatology outpatient clinic to participate in the study after approval of the ethical committee. Patients with low back pain less than six months and those having low back pain as a result of, inflammatory, infective, neoplastic, traumatic, metabolic, or congenital abnormalities were excluded from the study. All participants provided informed written consent and consented to the study findings being shared. Thirty healthy individuals matched for age, sex and body mass index, served as a control group. Methods: Clinical psychiatric assessment, Visual Analogue Scale, Oswestry Disability Questionnaire, anxiety and depression assessment, Survey of Pain Attitudes, Chronic Pain Coping Inventory and Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scale were used in the evaluation. Results: There was a statistically significant difference between the patients and control groups regarding anxiety (P 0.001), and depression (P 0.001). There was highly significant positive correlation between Visual Analogue Scale and Oswestry Disability Questionnaire total and its all sub scales (P 0.001). Conclusion: Chronic LBP patients had multiple psychosocial factors affecting their pain and disability. Psychological parameters have to be taken into account in any comprehensive concept of conservative treatment.