SynthesisJournal of occupational health2020
Low back pain prevalence and risk factors among health workers in Saudi Arabia: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Journal of occupational health, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 36 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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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.
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Who cites it
36 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 83 citations in OpenAlex.
- Prevalence of low back pain and its associated factors among weavers in low- and middle- income countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2025Pooled it
- Prevalence of lumbopelvic pain during pregnancy: A systematic review and meta-analysis of cross-sectional studies.Acta obstetricia et gynecologica Scandinavica · 2024Pooled it
- Low back pain prevalence and risk factors among health workers in Saudi Arabia: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of occupational health · 2020Pooled it
- Unilateral Balance, Muscular Strength, Foot Arch Status, and Physical Performance in Young Adults with and Without Low Back Pain.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Article
- Trends in the burden of low back pain attributable to occupational ergonomic factors among the global population aged 15-64 years (1990-2021): a study based on the GBD database.Journal of health, population, and nutrition · 2026Article
- Mapping the Prevalence and Risk Factors of Low Back Pain Among University Populations in Saudi Arabia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Review
- Utilization patterns and perceived effectiveness of manual therapy for low back pain among Saudi physical therapists: a national cross-sectional study.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Low Back Pain Characteristics Among Health Science Undergraduates: A Prospective Study for 2-Year Follow Up.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Article
- Saudi Clinical Practice Guideline for the Assessment and Management of Low Back Pain and Sciatica in Adults.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Article
- Physical and emotional health among nurses in protracted crisis settings in Lebanon and Jordan: A cross-sectional study.PloS one · 2026Article
- Prevalence of Low Back Pain in Nonworking Women in Eastern Saudi Arabia: A Cross-sectional Survey.Cureus · 2026Article
- Prevalence of Low Back Pain in Saudi Arabia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of 124 Studies.Journal of pain research · 2026Review
- Sagittal Spinopelvic Alignment and Mobility Are Not Associated With Low Back Pain in Healthcare Workers.Cureus · 2025Article
- Determinants of Quality of Life Among Saudi Adults with Sciatica: A Cross-Sectional Study.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2025Article
- Optimising ergonomics in minimally invasive gynaecological surgery: a comprehensive review and practice recommendations.Facts, views & vision in ObGyn · 2025Article
- Prevalence and predictors of back pain among primary healthcare workers in Qatar in 2023.Qatar medical journal · 2025Article
- Prevalence, predisposing factors, and turnover intention related to low back pain among health workers in Accra, Ghana.PloS one · 2025Article
- The prevalence of occupational-related low back pain among working populations in sub-saharan Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of occupational medicine and toxicology (London, England) · 2024Article
- Risk factors Associated with Pain Severity in Syrian patients with non-specific low back Pain.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2024Article
- Pay-for-performance and low back pain with interaction of overwork: findings from the cross-sectional Korean working conditions survey.Frontiers in public health · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
1 author at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesLow back pain (LBP) has a major impact on health workers, and its prevalence and risk factors among them in Saudi Arabia have been investigated previously. However, the results have never been comprehensively reviewed. Therefore, the aim of this study was to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of the available literature to identify the prevalence and risk factors of LBP among health workers in Saudi Arabia.
methodsMEDLINE/PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, CINAHL, and Saudi peer-reviewed journals were searched for relevant literature. After quality assessment of the eligible articles, 18 studies targeting seven occupational categories, with a total number of 5345 health workers, were analyzed.
resultsPooled prevalence rates of 40.8% (n = 7 studies), 65.0% (n = 13 studies), and 81.4% (n = 2 studies) were obtained for week, year, and career, respectively, across all professional groups. Nurses and physical therapists were more susceptible to LBP, in that order, than the other categories considering week and career periods. Age, body mass index, and female gender were the most commonly reported individual risk factors. Occupational risk factors mainly included work-related activities requiring back bending and twisting, lifting and pulling objects, and manual patient-handling.
conclusionsThe results of this review indicate that LBP is highly prevalent among health workers in Saudi Arabia when compared with international rates. Proper prophylactic measures are necessary to reduce LBP and minimize its consequences. Further high-quality research is needed in different Saudi regions to achieve a broader understanding of LBP prevalence and causes.
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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.