Contextualizing the lived experiences of patients with low back pain from different countries according to the ICF framework.
Ellen Aartun, Iben Axén, Silvano Mior and 4 others
PMID 33778896WHAT IT FOUND
Patients with back pain in Canada, Botswana and Norway mostly described limits in daily activities, pain, emotions, sleep and energy.
Family, health services and work environments also mattered.
Key findings
01Activities and Participation accounted for the largest share of linked concepts.
02Pain sensation was the most frequent body function category; emotional functions, sleep functions, sensations related to muscles and movement functions, and energy and drive functions followed.
03Personal Factors, including beliefs about back pain and concerns about the future, accounted for 11.6% of meaningful concepts.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
Participants were recruited from different clinic types in each country, so the sample may not represent all patients with low back pain. The number of participants varied by site, and the authors noted this may affect how fully each topic was covered. The study did not collect how severe the back pain or disability was, so differences between patients cannot be checked. Botswana interviews were translated from Setswana into English, which may affect nuance. The analysis links patients' words to ICF categories; it does not test whether any treatment works.
Declared interests
Funding came from Et Liv I Bevegelse, the Norwegian Chiropractic Research Foundation and the University of Ontario Institute of Technology. The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the frequent activity and participation themes as proof that manual care works. This study only described what patients said in focus groups; it did not compare treatment groups or measure outcomes.