Principles & Practice of Pain Medicine > Part IV. Pain by Anatomic Location > B. Spine > Chapter 28. Low Back Pain Steven P. Cohen, John Rowlingson, and Salahadin Abdi

Epidemiology

"In modern society, one would be hard-pressed to overestimate the impact of low back pain (LBP). The costs of this problem, in both human suffering and dollars, are staggering. Although figures vary widely, the lifetime prevalence of LBP is usually quoted as ranging from 60% to 85%, with an annual rate of about 5%. In one recent study, the point prevalence of LBP was estimated to be 30%...."