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Adhering to physical therapy interventions for treatment of acute LBP has been found to reduce recurrences of LBP and its transition to chronic pain.
According to a study
issued in 'Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation', the
early physical therapy (PT) for acute low back pain (LBP) decreases
the health services utilisation (HSU) and cost, reduces opioid use,
and may improve the healthcare efficiency.
Elizabeth Arnold et
al. studied the impact of early PT for acute LBP on subsequent HSU,
as distinguished from delayed PT or usual care. The data sources
comprised of Electronic database search of MEDLINE, CINAHL, and
EMBASE from their inception to May 2018. The results from
prospective, retrospective cohort studies and RCTs that examined the
relationship between early PT and HSU were compared to the delayed PT
or usual care.
For inclusion of the studies as per the
eligibility criteria, two authors screened the titles, abstracts, and
full-text articles, whose discrepancies were further resolved by a
third author. Out of 1,146 articles, 11 articles were included in
this systematic review where the data were extracted by two
independent reviewers on the basis of the participant population, PT
timing, comparison to delayed PT or usual care, and downstream HSU.
Moreover, a third reviewer examined the information to assure the
correctness and consensus of information. The Downs and Black
checklist was used to assess the risk of bias using the same method.
Early PT is before completion of 30 days from the index visit for
acute LBP. In five out of six studies it was noted that the early PT
reduces the future HSU cost when compared to the delayed PT. Also,
the random-effects meta-analysis showed a notable decrease in opioid
use, spine injection and surgery. Mixed results were observed in five
studies which compared early PT to usual care.
This review may be
beneficial for the patients, healthcare providers, healthcare
systems, and 3rd party payers in making decisions for acute LBP
treatment.
Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
The Impact of Timing of Physical Therapy for Acute Low Back Pain on Health Services Utilization: A Systematic Review
Elizabeth Arnold et al.
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