Evidence map›Paper›PMID 17976240›Full record

SynthesisBMC musculoskeletal disorders2007

The prevalence of low back pain in Africa: a systematic review.

Quinette A Louw, Linzette D Morris, Karen Grimmer-Somers

Registry-linked trialAbstract readSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in BMC musculoskeletal disorders, 2007. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT03449810 (Effectiveness of Muscles Energy Technique on Quality of Life and Trunk Muscles Functions in Patients With Chronic Non-specific Low Back Pain), which is not on this map. Cited by 150 papers, 16 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
150citing papers in PubMed, 16 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT03449810 nacompletednot on this mapstarted 2019, after this paper: background citation

Effectiveness of Muscles Energy Technique on Quality of Life and Trunk Muscles Functions in Patients With Chronic Non-specific Low Back Pain

TypeinterventionalSponsorUniversity of KwaZuluRan2019 to 2019Enrolled125ConditionsChronic Non-specific Low Back PainArmsDSE plus MET group A, DSE alone group B, Standard Physiotherapy treatment group C
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

150 citing papers in PubMed, 16 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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  11. The Global Spine Care Initiative: a consensus process to develop and validate a stratification scheme for surgical care of spinal disorders as a guide for improved resource utilization in low- and middle-income communities.European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2018
    Guideline
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  15. Pain in people living with HIV/AIDS: a systematic review.Journal of the International AIDS Society · 2014
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90 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Quinette A LouwDivision of Physiotherapy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, PO Box 19063, Tygerberg, 7505, South Africa. qalouw@sun.ac.za
Linzette D Morris
Karen Grimmer-Somers

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundLow back pain (LBP) is the most prevalent musculoskeletal condition and one the most common causes of disability in the developed nations. Anecdotally, there is a general assumption that LBP prevalence in Africa is comparatively lower than in developed countries. The aim of this review was to systematically appraise the published prevalence studies conducted on the African continent to establish the prevalence of LBP in Africa.

methodsA comprehensive search was conducted in April 2006. The following databases PEDro, Psychinfo, Science Direct, SportsDiscus, PubMed, CINAHL, Biblioline Pro-African Wide NiPAD and SA ePublications were individually searched using specifically developed search strategies for epidemiological research conducted on LBP amongst the African population. Two reviewers independently evaluated the methodological quality of the studies reviewed.

resultsA total of 27 eligible epidemiological studies were included in this review. The majority of the studies (63%) were conducted in South Africa (37%) and Nigeria (26%). The most common population group involved workers (48%), while scholars comprised 15% of the population. 67% of the studies were found to be methodologically sound, and the LBP prevalence of these were analyzed. The mean LBP point prevalence among the adolescents was 12% and among adults was 32%. The average one year prevalence of LBP among adolescents was 33% and among adults was 50%. The average lifetime prevalence of LBP among the adolescents was 36% and among adults was 62%.

conclusionThe findings support the global burden of disease of LBP, in addition to suggesting that LBP prevalence among Africans is rising and is of concern. Further research into the most effective strategies to prevent and manage LBP in Africa is warranted.

Indexed as

AdolescentAdultAfricaAge DistributionCost of IllnessCross-Sectional StudiesDeveloping CountriesFemaleGlobal HealthHumansLow Back PainMaleOccupationsPrevalenceRegistries

Identifiers

PMID17976240
PMCPMC2198912

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.