Low back pain in university students: what is the impact of COVID-19 pandemic?

Abstract

The social isolation resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the population’s habits and raised health-related issues, such as low back pain. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence and risk of chronic low back pain in university students during the social isolation of COVID-19. We used an online questionnaire, the STarT Back Screening Tool (SBST), to check for low back pain. The factors investigated: sociodemographic data, pain, sedentary behavior, and physical activity. For proportion heterogeneity, we used the chi-square test. The adjusted analysis used Poisson regression with robust variance. A total of 208 students participated in the sample. University students with a partner were twice as likely to have pain (PR=2.07; 95%CI). The prevalence of low back pain was 48.1%; 87% (PR=1.87; 95%CI: 1.09-3.21; p=0.027) higher in women. University students with obesity were 42% more likely to have low back pain (PR=1.42; 95%CI: 1.04-1.94; p=0.032); and with sedentary behavior were 35% more likely to have low back pain (PR=1.36; 95%CI: 1.02-1.81; p=0.038). In total, 82% of the sample presented low risk of chronicity. Many people presented low back pain during the social isolation imposed by COVID-19. This is a common, limiting problem that must be considered and treated as a health and research priority.