Epidemiological trends of low back pain at the global, regional, and national levels

Abstract

Abstract Purpose We aimed to assess the global, regional, and national burdens of low back pain (LBP) from 1990 to 2019 by gender, age, and the sociodemographic index (SDI) from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2019 study. Methods The number of incident cases, disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), age-standardized incidence rates, and age-standardized DALY rates during 1990–2019 were obtained from the GBD 2019 study. The estimated annual percentage changes (EAPCs) in the age-standardized incidence rates and age-standardized DALY rates were determined to measure the temporal trends of LBP. Results In 2019, there were an estimated 223.5 million cases of LBP and 63.7 million LBP-related DALYs worldwide. During 1990–2019, the age-standardized incidence rate [EAPC =  − 0.41; 95% confidence interval (CI) − 0.46 to − 0.36] and age-standardized DALY rate decreased (EAPC =  − 0.51; 95% CI − 0.56 to − 0.46) globally. The age-standardized incidence rate of LBP decreased the most in low-middle SDI regions. The age-standardized incidence rate of LBP decreased the most in South Asia (EAPC, − 1.51), East Asia (EAPC, − 0.68), and Australasia (EAPC, − 0.26). The incidence in male subjects was lower than that in female subjects. The largest decreases in the age-standardized incidence rate and age-standardized DALY rate of LBP were observed in India, and China. Conclusions The global age-standardized incidence rate and age-standardized DALY rate of LBP showed a downward trend, especially in East and South Asia. In addition, a heavier burden of LBP was observed in older and female populations.