LONG-TERM FOLLOW-UP OF PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC BACK PAIN TREATED IN A MULTIDISCIPLINARY REHABILITATION PROGRAM

Study Design. The study evaluated the long-term outcomes of 129 chroni c low back pain patients who had completed a multidisciplinary rehabil itation program.Objectives. Two major outcome issues were addressed-on e related to the effectiveness of the program as measured by return to work, use of the medical system, and sense of well being, and the oth er concerning the stability of the outcome effect over time. Summary o f Background Data. Other outcome studies have established the short-te rm effectiveness of rehabilitation programs such as the present one wi th between 50% and 75% of patients. However, long-term follow-up-i.e., 1 1/2 to 2 years or more-has been lacking to determine what happens l ater. Methods. Graduates of the program were contacted by telephone to complete a 23-item questionnaire. Every effort was made to include al l who had completed the program. Many had moved away or were inaccessi ble, but few of those contacted refused to participate. Results. An at tempt was made to classify the job outcome into good, fiar, and poor o utcomes by weighting return to work, remaining at work, and continuing to look for work. Forty-nine percent of the sample attained a good jo b outcome, 13% a fair job outcome, and 38% a poor job outcome. Regardi ng general well-being, 53% reported doing better or much better, 27% r eported being about the same, and 20% reported being worse or much wor se at follow-up. Conclusions. The results provide support for the effi cacy of programs such as this.