A prospective study of persistent back pain after pregnancy.

OBJECTIVES

To determine the prevalence of back pain after delivery and its relationship to individual factors.

STUDY DESIGN

A cohort of 88 pregnant women, aged 14-46 years, who had suffered from back pain during pregnancy, and delivered at Aydin Maternity Hospital was selected. They had been followed up through pregnancy, and 6 months post partum filled out a questionnaire. The data were analyzed statistically.

RESULTS

Follow-up showed that back pain at the time of delivery and 6 months post partum was reported by 59.1% and 43.2% of the women, respectively. The difference in prevalence of back pain between young women and older ones was statistically significant (P=0.000). The number of previous pregnancies increased the risk of back pain (P=0.000), but there was no difference in prevalence of back pain between women with heavy work and without heavy work before pregnancy (P=0.310). Furthermore, women with a history of back pain before pregnancy were found to experience more intense pain at 6 months post partum compared to those without a history of back pain before pregnancy (2.1+/-1.0 and 0.4+/-0.4. respectively. P=0.000).

CONCLUSION

These results indicate that pregnant women with a previous history of back pain had a higher prevalence of back pain, especially in young multigravid patients.