Chronic back pain among Brazilian adults: data from the 2019 National Health Survey.

Abstract

OBJECTIVE To estimate the prevalence of chronic back pain (CBP) and its associated factors. METHODS This cross-sectional study analyzed the 2019 National Health Survey, with 88,531 adults, using logistic regression to identify associated factors. RESULTS CBP was reported by 21.6% of adults and was more likely to occur among women (odds ratio - OR=1.27; 95% confidence interval - 95%CI 1.19-1.35), increased with age: 25-34 years (OR=1.30; 95%CI 1.11-1.51), 35-44 (OR=1.78; 95%CI 1.54-2.07), 45-54 years (OR=2.23; 95%CI 1.91-2.59), 55-64 years (OR=2.47; 95%CI 2.12-2.88), and 65 years or older (OR=2.17; 95%CI 1.85-2.54); among smokers (OR=1.24; 95%CI 1.13-1.35); ex-smokers (OR=1.30; 95%CI 1.21-1.39); those who mentioned heavy housework (OR=1.41; 95%CI 1.31-1.53); obesity (OR=1.12; 95%CI 1.03-1.21); hypertension (OR=1.21; 95%CI 1.11-1.32); high cholesterol (OR=1.53; 95%CI 1.42-1.65); with self-rated health - with a very good reference - in the gradients: good (OR=1.38; 95%CI 1.23-1.55), regular (OR=2.64; 95%CI 2.34-2.98), poor (OR=4.24; 95%CI 3.64-4.94), and very poor (OR=5.24; 95%CI 4.13-6.65); its likelihood was lower in adults with complete elementary school/incomplete high school (OR=0.82; 95%CI 0.75-0.90) and complete high school/incomplete higher education (OR=0.87; 95%CI 0.81-0.95). CONCLUSION Back pain has a high prevalence and shows associations with demographic and socioeconomic factors, lifestyle, chronic diseases, and self-rated health.