Department of General Practice, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2011 Aug 19;12:193. doi: 10.1186/1471-2474-12-193.
Although back complaints are common among older people, limited information is available in the literature about the clinical course of back pain in older people and the identification of older persons at risk for the transition from acute back complaints to chronic back pain. The aim of this study is to assess the course of back complaints and identify prognostic factors for the transition from acute back complaints to chronic back complaints in older people who visit a primary health care physician.
METHODS/DESIGN: The design is a prospective cohort study with one-year follow-up. There will be no interference with usual care. Patients older than 55 years who consult a primary health care physician with a new episode of back complaints will be included in this study. Data will be collected using a questionnaire, physical examination and X-ray at baseline, and follow-up questionnaires after 6 weeks and 3, 6, 9 and 12 months. The study 'Back Complaints in the Elders' (BACE) will take place in different countries: starting in the Netherlands, Brazil and Australia. The research groups collaborate in the BACE consortium. The design and basic objectives of the study will be the same across the studies.
This consortium is a collaboration between different research groups, aiming to provide insight into the course of back complaints in older people and to identify prognostic factors for the transition from acute back complaints to chronic back complaints in older persons. The BACE consortium allows to investigate differences between older people with back complaints and the health care systems in the different countries and to increase the statistical power by enabling meta-analyses using the individual patient data. Additional research groups worldwide are invited to join the BACE consortium.
尽管背部疼痛在老年人中很常见，但关于老年人背部疼痛的临床过程以及识别有从急性背部疼痛向慢性背部疼痛转变风险的老年人的信息有限。本研究旨在评估老年人背部疼痛的病程，并确定从急性背部疼痛向慢性背部疼痛转变的预后因素，这些老年人会去看初级保健医生。
方法/设计：这是一项前瞻性队列研究，随访时间为一年。不会对常规护理进行干预。本研究将纳入 55 岁以上因新发作的背部疼痛而去看初级保健医生的患者。将在基线时使用问卷、体格检查和 X 射线收集数据，并在 6 周、3 个月、6 个月、9 个月和 12 个月时进行随访问卷。这项名为“老年人背部疼痛研究（BACE）”的研究将在不同的国家进行：首先在荷兰、巴西和澳大利亚开始。研究小组在 BACE 联盟中合作。研究设计和基本目标在所有研究中都是相同的。
该联盟是不同研究小组之间的合作，旨在深入了解老年人背部疼痛的病程，并确定从急性背部疼痛向慢性背部疼痛转变的老年人的预后因素。BACE 联盟允许研究有背部疼痛的老年人和不同国家的医疗保健系统之间的差异，并通过使用个体患者数据进行荟萃分析来增加统计能力。邀请世界各地的其他研究小组加入 BACE 联盟。
