THE EFFECT OF COMORBIDITY ON FUNCTIONING AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32782/health-2025.1.22Keywords:
pain, chronic pain, chronic low back pain, comorbidities, comorbidity, quality of life, functioningAbstract
Pain is the most common complaint that is addressed to specialists of various medical profiles. Chronic pain is considered as a complex interaction of biological, psychological and social factors. Chronic low back pain is the main cause of impaired functioning among people of working age and has a tendency to increase among this patient population.Approaches to the management of chronic low back pain are based on the principles of the biopsychosocial model and require detailing not only the pain status but also the factors that have a negative impact on its course. It is known that comorbidities are a factor in the chronicization of pain and can further complicate the course of this condition.Objective. To assess the prevalence of comorbidities and the impact of comorbidity on quality of life and functioning in patients with chronic low back pain. Materials and methods of the study. To achieve this goal, a survey of 108 people with chronic nonspecific low back pain, aged 18-60 years, was conducted. The survey included: socio-demographic and anthropometric data, lifestyle data, physical activity level data, pain status assessment, assessment of comorbidities, quality of life assessment, and impairment assessment. Results of the study. It was found that among the study subjects, comorbidities were observed in 57 % of cases, among the comorbidities the most common were: 31 % musculoskeletal system diseases, 28 % cardiovascular system diseases, 16 % gastrointestinal system diseases. Patients with chronic low back pain and comorbidity had significantly higher age (p < 0.001), weight (p < 0.05), BMI (p < 0.01), VAS pain intensity (p < 0.01), lower FA (p < 0.05), physical and mental components of quality of life (p < 0.05) and significantly worse functioning (p < 0.001) compared to those without comorbidities. Conclusions. The majority of subjects with chronic low back pain have comorbidities that lead to a significant deterioration in functioning, decreased quality of life, especially in the scales of physical functioning, mental health, pain, and general health.
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