'It can be very complicated': A qualitative analysis of clinicians' practices and perspectives on treating adolescents with nonspecific persistent back pain.
Sara D Hauber, Katie Robinson, Kieran O'Sullivan
PMID 40070121WHAT IT FOUND
Clinicians treating adolescents with persistent back pain prioritised function over pain reduction.
They found success depended on aligning goals with both the teen and their parents, as parental buy-in determined attendance. Treatment varied by clinician training, with many relying on exercise before addressing psychosocial factors.
Key findings
01The primary goal of treatment was improving function and managing pain, rather than eliminating pain entirely.
02Clinicians described managing the adolescent-parent relationship as central to treatment, noting that lack of parental buy-in risked the adolescent not attending sessions.
03Treatment approaches varied significantly based on the clinician's own training and professional comfort zone, rather than being uniform.
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
The study relied on a small sample of 14 clinicians, which limits the transferability of the findings. Participants were primarily from Ireland and England, so findings may not apply to other healthcare systems. Reflexive thematic analysis acknowledges the researcher's subjectivity as part of the analysis, meaning interpretations are situated rather than objective. The study reports clinician perspectives and practices, not patient outcomes, so it does not evaluate the effectiveness of these approaches.
Declared interests
The authors disclosed that the University of Limerick Faculty of Education and Health Sciences provided a fee waiver for the lead researcher. No other conflicts of interest were reported.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret these themes as evidence that specific treatments work. This study reports what clinicians *do* and *think*, not what outcomes those actions produce. There is no data here on whether prioritising function over pain actually improves patient recovery.