[Factors in the chronic progression of common low back pain]

The main risk factors for developing chronic low back pain are related to comorbidity, the social circle of the patient and family status, the patient's concept of his health status, the patient's profession and the interval before medical treatment. For patients undergoing surgery, the same risk factors for chronic low back pain are found, with a predominance of professional status and age of the patient. On the contrary, the initial handicap and the type of management are of little importance in patient outcome. It is important to detect early the factors that risk to favour the transition to chronicity of low back pain. The effectiveness of both medical and socio-professional approaches to prevention remains to be evaluated and defined in prospective studies.