Low back pain prevalence and characteristics in caregivers of stroke patients: a pilot study.

PURPOSE

The aim of this study was to determine the frequency and features of low back pain (LBP) among stroke caregivers.

METHOD

Participants included 64 caregivers of stroke survivors in our inpatient clinic. Age, gender, body weight, FIMTM, and Brunnstrom Scale of patients and low back pain history, Short Form-36 (SF-36), Beck Depression Measure (BDM), and Oswestry Disability Scale (ODS) of caregivers were reported. Descriptive statistics, Spearman correlation, and Mann-Whitney U test were used.

RESULTS

Fifty-three (82.8 %) of caregivers had LBP. Stroke survivors of caregivers with LBP (group 1) had significantly lower FIMTM scores when compared with stroke survivors of caregivers without LBP (group 2) (P < .05). All SF-36 subscores and total score of group 1 except mental health were significantly lower than SF-36 scores of group 2.

DISCUSSION

The lifetime, 12-month period, and point prevalence of LBP were 44.1%, 34.0%, and 19.7%, respectively, in our country. Caregivers had a higher frequency of LBP in this study. However it was a study with a small number of participants. There are many studies about stroke caregivers' depression and life quality. LBP should also be investigated.