Back to basics: 10 facts every person should know about back pain

Two articles on PainSci cite O’Sullivan 2019: 1. When to Worry About Low Back Pain 2. The Complete Guide to Low Back Pain 

PainSci notes on O’Sullivan 2019:

A highly credible and readable explanation of back pain myths. Lead author Peter O’Sullivan shared the myths and a nice featured infographic in a tweet. Here are the “unhelpful” low back pain beliefs, “culturally endorsed and not supported by evidence,” identified by the authors:

1. FALSE: Low back pain is usually a serious medical condition.
2. FALSE: Low back pain will become persistent and deteriorate in later life.
3. FALSE: Persistent low back pain is always related to tissue damage.
4. FALSE: Scans are always needed to detect the cause of low back pain.
5. FALSE: Pain related to exercise and movement is always a warning that harm is being done to the spine and a signal to stop or modify activity.
6. FALSE: Low back pain is caused by weak “core” muscles and having a strong core protects against future Low back pain.
7. FALSE: Repeated spinal loading results in “wear and tear” and tissue damage.
8. FALSE: Pain flare-ups are a sign of tissue damage and require rest.
9. FALSE: Treatments such as strong medications, injectionss and surgery are effective, and necessary, to treat Low back pain.

related content

Specifically regarding O’Sullivan 2019:

• twitter.com/…

This page is part of the PainScience BIBLIOGRAPHY, which contains plain language summaries of thousands of scientific papers & others sources. It’s like a highly specialized blog. A few highlights:

• No long-term effects after a three-week open-label placebo treatment for chronic low back pain: a three-year follow-up of a randomized controlled trial. Kleine-Borgmann 2022 Pain.
• Exercise and education versus saline injections for knee osteoarthritis: a randomised controlled equivalence trial. Bandak 2022 Ann Rheum Dis.
• Association of Lumbar MRI Findings with Current and Future Back Pain in a Population-based Cohort Study. Kasch 2022 Spine (Phila Pa 1976).
• A double-blinded randomised controlled study of the value of sequential intravenous and oral magnesium therapy in patients with chronic low back pain with a neuropathic component. Yousef 2013 Anaesthesia.
• Is Neck Posture Subgroup in Late Adolescence a Risk Factor for Persistent Neck Pain in Young Adults? A Prospective Study. Richards 2021 Phys Ther.