ArticleBrazilian journal of physical therapy
Misconceptions of physical therapists and medical doctors regarding the impact of lifting a light load on low back pain.
Article in Brazilian journal of physical therapy. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
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Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed.
- Exploring physicians' perspectives on influencing factors of chronic non-specific low back pain: a qualitative study.Scandinavian journal of primary health care · 2026Article
- Reducing Back Exertion and Improving Confidence of Individuals with Low Back Pain with a Back Exosuit: A Feasibility Study for Use in BACPAC.Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.) · 2023Article
- Management of Low Back Pain: Do Physiotherapists Know the Evidence-Based Guidelines?International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Article
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundA common misconception about low back pain (LBP) is that the spine is weak and that lumbar flexion should be avoided. Because the beliefs of health-care professionals (HCPs) influence patients, it is important to understand the attitudes of health care professionals towards LBP and lifting.
objectivesTo assess and compare the perceptions of different categories of HCPs regarding the safety of specific movement strategies used to lift a light load, and their beliefs regarding back pain. The secondary aim was to determine whether certain factors influenced the beliefs of HCPs.
methodsData were collected via an electronic survey. Student and qualified physical therapists (PTs), medical students, and general practitioner (GP) trainees were included. The questionnaire included eight photographs, depicting eight different strategies to lift a light load. Respondents were requested to select the strategy(s) they considered as "unsafe" to use for asymptomatic people with a previous history of LBP and people with chronic LBP. Beliefs and attitudes towards LBP were evaluated using the Back Pain Attitudes Questionnaire (Back-PAQ).
resultsQuestionnaires from 1005 participants were included. Seventy percent of qualified PTs considered none of the strategies as harmful (versus 32% of PT students, 9% of GP trainees and 1% of medical students). Qualified PTs had higher Back-PAQ scores (mean ± SD: 13.6 ± 5.5) than PT students (8.7 ± 5.7), GP trainees (5.9 ± 5.9) and medical students (4.1 ± 5.2), indicating less misconceptions regarding LBP. Having LBP negatively influenced beliefs while taking a pain education course positively influenced beliefs.
conclusionMisconceptions regarding LBP and the harmfulness of lifting a light load with a rounded back remain common among HCPs, particularly medical doctors.
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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.