PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH THE SEVERITY OF CHRONIC BACK PAIN IN ADULTS: A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY

Abstract

ABSTRACT Objective: determining the multidimensional factors associated with the severity of chronic back pain is essential to design appropriate interventions. The objective of this study was to assess the physical and emotional factors associated with the severity of chronic back pain in adults. Method: a descriptive, analytical and cross-sectional study, carried out between November 2017 and December 2018 in Family Health Strategies, with 198 adults with chronic back pain. Pain severity, assessed by the Brief Pain Inventory, was considered the outcome variable; and the pain interference in daily activities (Brief Pain Inventory), physical disability (Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire), quality of life (World Health Organization Quality of Life-Brief) and pain threshold (digital algometer) variables were considered explanatory. A Multivariate Multiple Linear Regression analysis, using the stepwise method with 5% significance, was preformed to establish an explanatory model of pain severity. Results: the mean age was 48.03 years old (standard deviation: 12.41). Most of the participants were women, married and worked. The variables that had a significant and joint impact on pain severity were pain interference in daily activities (parameter: 0.196; p-value<0.001) and in mood (parameter: 0.054; p-value=0.039) and physical domain of quality of life (parameter: -0.032; p-value<0.001). Conclusion: physical factors (pain interference in daily activities and physical domain of quality of life) and emotional factors (pain interference in mood) play an important role in the severity of chronic back pain, which reinforces its multidimensional character.