Abstract
BackgroundWhile low back pain is a common presenting complaint in the emergency department, current estimates from Canada are limited. Furthermore, existing estimates do not clearly define low back pain. As such, our main objective was to estimate prevalence rates of low back pain in a large Nova Scotian emergency department using various definitions, and to describe characteristics of individuals included in these groups. An additional objective was to explore trends in low back pain prevalence in our emergency department over time.MethodsWe conducted a cross sectional analysis using six years of administrative data from our local emergency setting. We first calculated the prevalence and patient characteristics for individuals presenting with any complaint of back pain, and for groups diagnosed with different types of low back pain. We explored prevalence over time by analyzing presentation trends by month, day of the week and hour of the day.ResultsThe prevalence of patients presenting to the emergency department with a complaint of back pain was 3.17%. Individuals diagnosed with non-specific/mechanical low back pain with no potential nerve root involvement made up 60.8% of all back pain presentations. Persons diagnosed with non-specific/mechanical low back pain with potential nerve root involvement made up 6.7% of presentation and the low back pain attributed to secondary factors accounted for 9.9% of back pain presentations. We found a linear increase in presentations for low back pain over the study period.ConclusionThis is the first multi-year analysis assessing the prevalence of low back pain in a Canadian emergency department. Back pain is a common presenting complaint in our local emergency department, with most of these persons receiving a diagnosis of non-specific/mechanical low back pain with no potential nerve root involvement. Future research should concentrate on understanding the management of low back pain in this setting, to ensure this is the proper setting to manage this common condition.
Highlights
While low back pain is a common presenting complaint in the emergency department, current estimates from Canada are limited
Individuals receiving a diagnostic code compatible with low back pain with potential nerve root involvement made up 6.7% of all back pain presentations; the low back pain attributed to secondary factors group accounted for 9.9% of all back pain presentations (Fig. 1)
Patients spent a median length of 3.13 h (IQR: 1.93–5.1) in the emergency department and 34.7% of individuals presenting with back pain received x-rays
Summary
While low back pain is a common presenting complaint in the emergency department, current estimates from Canada are limited. Our main objective was to estimate prevalence rates of low back pain in a large Nova Scotian emergency department using various definitions, and to describe characteristics of individuals included in these groups. An additional objective was to explore trends in low back pain prevalence in our emergency department over time. A recent systematic review on the prevalence of low back pain in emergency settings [7] suggests that low back pain is a common presenting complaint to this setting (pooled prevalence estimate 4.3%). The review identified a need for studies comparing prevalence results from multiple definitions of low back pain and research conducted in Canada [7]
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.