OBJECTIVE:

To investigate the prevalence and factors associated with low back pain among adults in Taiwan.

METHODS:

The National Health Interview Survey, a cross-sectional study, was conducted from October 2002 to March 2003 to gather data from 24,435 adults aged 20 years and older selected randomly from Taiwan's general population. Participants with history of low back pain were assessed using a comprehensive questionnaire. Additional assessment of osteoporosis diagnosed by physician was also evaluated.

RESULTS:

Among the 24,435 adults, 25.7% had reported low back pain within the past 3 months. Factors associated with low back pain included female gender (odds ratio (OR) = 1.67, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.43-1.95), low education (OR = 1.38, 95% CI = 1.23-1.55), and blue-collar work (OR = 1.16, 95% CI = 1.07-1.26). Patients with osteoporosis were more likely than those without osteoporosis to have low back pain (OR = 2.55, 95% CI = 2.33-2.78) or frequent low back pain (OR = 4.15, 95% CI = 3.66-4.70). The ORs of frequent low back pain in association with osteoporosis in men and women were 5.77 (95% CI = 4.66-7.15) and 3.49 (95% CI = 2.99-4.07), respectively.

CONCLUSION:

Low back pain is prevalent among Taiwanese adults and is associated with osteoporosis.