Patient satisfaction with lower back pain treatments
Introduction
Lower back pain is considered as one of the leading causes of physical disabilities. It has also been cited as the most common cause of job-related disability and a leading contributor to missed work. Some of the most specific causes of lower back pain include:
- Herniated disk
- Collapsed vertebra
- Spondylolisthesis
- Pyelonephritis
- Shingles
- Ankylosing spondylitis
- Pregnancy
Low back Pain – Treatment Modalities
The treatment modalities for low back pain generally follow three forms of treatment, including conservative management, surgical procedures and alternative therapies. The most common forms of conservative treatment include:
- Activity modification
- Aerobic conditioning
- Pharmacologic Therapy
- Lifestyle alterations
- Psychological evaluation
Meanwhile, the key modes of surgical intervention include:
- Lumbar Disc Herniation
- Spinal Stenosis
- Spondylolisthesis
In the further sections, we have explained and analyzed the impact of various treatment modalities and satisfaction experienced by patients of lower back pain.
Research and Analysis – Patient Satisfaction
Patient satisfaction is widely accepted as a major indicator of the success rate of treatment modalities, along with acting as a strong basis for evaluation.
Exercise therapy is one of the most effective treatment methods for lower back pain. More than 75% of patients of lower back pain have reported satisfactory results from the use of physiotherapy for the pain.
This form of treatment is closely followed by vocational rehabilitation, which guides the patient for effective adjustment at the workplace. Patients suffering from lower back pain report that regular sessions of physiotherapy, especially when combined with other forms of treatment have considerably helped the condition of lower back pain.
Adding on, a series of study reports also reveal that a majority of patients respond well to medications. One such study conducted amongst 84 patients of lower back pain patients in a pain clinic concluded that the NSAIDs administered for the purpose had the maximum positive impact. However, these medications failed to provide relief in patients where the medication wasn’t supported by physiotherapy or basic mobilization.
Similarly, an increased number of lifestyle modifications, such cessation in smoking and maintaining a healthy diet had a strongly therapeutic effect on lower back pain.
Meanwhile, another distinct modality, the osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) has also been producing satisfactory results in patients with lower back pain. Various studies have indicated that the procedure of OMT provides significant pain relief, though for a shorter duration.
On the other hand, surgical procedures such as the lumbar disk herniation showed satisfactory results only in patients who failed to respond to any other form of medicine. However, surveys indicated that medical history was a major consideration and patients with an excessive turbulent past often failed to get the desired results.
Moreover, in these treatment options also, physiotherapy played an important role, thus forming the mainstay of a majority of treatment methods for lower back pain.
Lastly, alternative therapies like chiropractic, massage therapy, feldenkrais, holistic approach, gentle yoga, magnetic therapies, easy pilates have also been found to have positive results on patients with lower back pain.
