Affiliation:
1. School of Health & Sport Sciences University of Brighton Eastbourne UK
2. School of Architecture, Technology and Engineering University of Brighton Brighton UK
3. School of Applied Sciences University of Brighton Brighton UK
4. School of Basic and Medical Biosciences King's College London London UK
Abstract
ABSTRACTBackgroundMusculoskeletal (MSK) conditions affect over 20.3 million people in the UK, presenting a substantial economic impact on health and social services. Physiotherapy can alleviate MSK conditions, especially if delivered in the acute or sub‐acute period. However, patients often present after significant waiting times.ObjectivesOur analysis examined how waiting times and the number of treatments influenced physiotherapy outcomes for MSK conditions.DesignRetrospective analysis of the Data for Impact, Physio First dataset.MethodsLogistic regression models assessed the effects of symptom duration, treatment frequency, and other variables on pain, Patient‐Specific Functional Scores (PSFSs), and Goal Achievement (GA).ResultsAnalysis of 15,624 patient records showed that patients treated within two weeks of symptom onset were more likely to have favourable outcomes in pain (odds ratio [OR] = 2.01, 95% Confidence Interval [95% CI] = 1.65–2.45), PSFS (OR = 1.80, 95% CI = 1.55–2.08), and GA (OR = 1.74, 95% CI = 1.51–2.01) compared to those treated after longer durations. Receiving four or more treatment sessions significantly improved outcomes compared with only one session (pain: OR = 4.64, PSFS: OR = 5.72, GA: OR = 1.94, all p's < 0.001), with no additional benefits beyond four sessions. Younger age was associated with better outcomes (approximately OR = 0.99 per year age difference). Other findings included better outcomes in males and in those with fewer previous episodes of the condition.ConclusionsShorter waiting times, a greater number of treatments, and younger patient age are associated with better physiotherapy outcomes for MSK conditions.