TRENDS OF BACK PAIN IN EASTERN FINLAND, 1972-1992, IN RELATION TO SOCIOECONOMIC-STATUS AND BEHAVIORAL RISK-FACTORS

The aim of this study was to compare the trends in the prevalence of b ack pain between several population subgroups and to assess the stabil ity of the associations between back pain and its potential risk facto rs. Five cross-sectional surveys with independent random samples were conducted in two provinces in eastern Finland every fifth year from 19 72 to 1992. There were 29,043 respondents aged 30-59 years. The respon dents completed a questionnaire that asked about the occurrence of bac k pain during the preceding month. The prevalence of back pain varied between 46 and 50 percent among men and between 46 and 51 percent amon g women. In general, the trend for the entire sample was fairly stable , but the prevalence rates seemed to differ considerably between subgr oups of the population. Back pain was more prevalent among those with lower education and income, those with blue-collar occupations, and th ose doing heavy work. The trends were significantly inconsistent (p < 0.05), for example, between the categories according to household inco me and, among men, between the categories according to body mass index , a suspected risk factor for back pain.