Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36765327›Full record

ArticleChiropractic & manual therapies2023

Multimorbidity in patients with low back pain in Danish chiropractic practice: a cohort study.

Bolette Skjødt Rafn, Jan Hartvigsen, Volkert Siersma, John Sahl Andersen

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Chiropractic & manual therapies, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
1.7field-weighted citation impact, top 16% of its field
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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 8 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Mapping Comorbidities in Patients With Low Back Pain-A Systematic Review.Physiotherapy research international : the journal for researchers and clinicians in physical therapy · 2025
    Pooled it
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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

4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Bolette Skjødt RafnResearch Unit for General Practice and Section of General Practice, Department of Public Health, Copenhagen University, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Jan HartvigsenChiropractic Knowledge Hub, Odense, Denmark.
Volkert SiersmaResearch Unit for General Practice and Section of General Practice, Department of Public Health, Copenhagen University, Copenhagen, Denmark.
John Sahl AndersenResearch Unit for General Practice and Section of General Practice, Department of Public Health, Copenhagen University, Copenhagen, Denmark. sal@sund.ku.dk.ORCID 0000-0001-7235-4359
University of Copenhagen · DKUniversity of Southern Denmark · DK

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundPeople with multimorbidity, defined as the co-existence of two or more chronic conditions in an individual, often suffer from pain and functional limitations caused by musculoskeletal disorders and the chronic conditions. In chiropractic practice, two thirds of patients are treated for low back pain (LBP). It is unknown to what extent LBP is accompanied with chronic conditions in chiropractic practice. The objective was to determine the prevalence of multimorbidity among patients with LBP in chiropractric practice and to investigate if multimorbidity affects pain intensity, self-rated health, physical and mental health. Finally, to explore if individuals with multimorbidity have a different recovery for the LBP.

methodsPatients presenting with a new episode of LBP were recruited from 10 chiropractic clinics in 2016-2018. Patient-reported data concerning socio-demographics, self-rated health, pain intensity, history of LBP, mental health and chronic conditions were collected at baseline. The prevalence of multimorbidity was determined. To evaluate differences in recovery from the LBP, we estimated changes in the Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire (RMDQ) score and use of pain medication at baseline, 2 weeks, 3 months and 12 months. The analyses were adjusted using regression models.

results2083 patients were included at baseline and 71%, 68% and 64% responded to follow-up questionnaires at 2 weeks, 3 and 12 months. 1024 (49%) participants reported to have at least one chronic condition and 421 (20%) had multimorbidity (≥ 2 chronic conditions). The presence of multimorbidity was associated with increased odds of poor self-rated health (OR 2.13), physical fitness (OR 1.79), poor muscular strength (OR 1.52), poor endurance (OR 1.51), and poor balance (OR 1.33). Patients with high LBP intensity combined with multimorbidity showed a poorer recovery than patients without chronic diseases (mean difference in RMDQ score 3.53 at 12 months follow-up). More patients with multimorbidity used pain medication for LBP at 12 months follow-up compared to those without chronic disease (OR 2.36).

conclusionsChiropractors should be aware that patients with LBP may suffer from multimorbidity with poor general health. Patients with multimorbidity also have poorer recovery from LBP than people without chronic disease and clinical follow-up may be indicated.

Indexed as

ChiropracticLow Back PainChronic DiseaseCohort StudiesDenmarkHumansMultimorbidityTreatment OutcomeChiropractorLow back painMultimorbidityRecovery

Identifiers

PMID36765327
PMCPMC9921470
OpenAlexW4319959422

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.