Nonspecific low back pain in a group of young adult men

Low back pain (LBP) is a common symptom that causes enormous social, psychological, and economical problems. We studied LBP occurrence in a group of young adults referred to an army hospital for a planned health check and evaluated possible causative factors by prospective questionnaires.

This article is based on a prospective study of 871 novice soldiers of the Turkish Army. Studied factors were combined in the form, which was filled by 5 doctors on the basis of self-reports, interview and physical examination of the participants. They were evaluated by factors; low back pain episodes, monthly income, smoking habits, BMI, labor conditions, and educational status.

The median age of the studied population was 21.14±1.4. Complains regarding LBP were observed in 325 (37%) of participants. Twelve participants had pain episodes up to 10 points. 83.69% of the participants with LBP had psychological problems. Heavy lifting and driving for long periods were determined as serious risk factors.

Determining the impact factors of LBP in primary care groups can help to prevent development of more serious problems.