Low back pain should be considered a health and research priority in Brazil: Lost productivity and healthcare costs between 2012 to 2016

Abstract

Background Low Back Pain (LBP) is associated with an increase in disability-adjusted life years, and increased risk of disability retirement and greater absenteeism in Brazil. Hence, evidence on healthcare and lost productivity costs due to LBP is of utmost importance to inform decision-makers. Methods Cost-of-illness study with top-down approach, and societal perspective. We extracted data from National databases, considering the period 2012-2016. Outpatient expenses included clinical, surgical, diagnosis, orthosis/prosthetics, and complementary actions. Inpatient care expenses included hospital and professional services, intensive care unit, and companion stay. For productivity losses, duration of work absence and associated information (workrelated and non-work-related; value of the sickness absence benefit; age; gender; and economic activity) were analyzed. Lost productivity costs were calculated multiplying the absence from work (days) by the daily-benefit. Results The societal costs amounted to US$ 2.2 billion, and productivity losses represented 79% of the costs. Total healthcare expenses were estimated to US$ 460 million. We found more than 880,000 diagnostic images. Individuals with LBP were in total 59 million days absent from work between 2012-2016. The mean lost days absent from work per person, for each

What Was the Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Low Back Pain? Data from the PAMPA Cohort, Brazil.

“…Recently LBP has been recognized as a health and research priority in Brazil due to its impact on productivity and days of work lost [9]. Also, the COVID-19 outbreak raised further health issues related to…”

“…Furthermore, longer and uninterrupted time spent at home due to social distancing might lead to additional time spent in sedentary activities, such as sitting. The increase in those activities, as well as the decrease in active commuting due to home o ce, could potentially be associated with a higher burden of LBP during the pandemic [7,8].Recently LBP has been recognized as a health and research priority in Brazil due to its impact on productivity and days of work lost [9]. Also, the COVID-19 outbreak raised further health issues related to…”

Management of non-serious low back pain in the context of emergency care. Is it worth the cost?

“…Their results provide an important reflection towards the need for improvement of health services and policies to deal with the increasing burden of low back pain [10] . Recent data from some studies strengthen the idea that we should refrain from low-value interventions, towards evidence-based cost-effective management strategies [10] to improve the sustainability of health systems [3] . This is relevant, as emergency care could expose patients to overmedicalization and unnecessary diagnostic imaging or hospital admissions when compared, for example, to management strategies provided by primary care professionals.…”

“…It is well-known that individuals affected by low back pain are high frequent users of health resources and numerous managing strategies provided by the different levels of health care systems. Evidence regarding healthcare costs due to low back pain has been established in several countries for the past 20 years [3] , [4] , [5] , [6] , which provides insightful information to broaden the understanding of public health problems. For instance, the 12-month health care costs associated with the treatment of low back pain in the United Kingdom was estimated at approximately £2•8 billion [7] .…”

The Rationale for the Automation of a New Diagnostic Thermography Protocol to Confirm a Chronic-Low-Back-Pain Subtype Related to Nociplastic Pain

“…Lately, the increasing prevalence of acute and chronic LBP, which doubled in the aging population, has been underlined [3]. This leads to activity limitation for the patients and their temporary working disability, as well as results in medical burden and economic cost [4][5][6]. The most problematic subgroups are patients developing the chronic form characteristic of around 10% of LBP cases [7].…”