Physiotherapy for neck and back pain

doi:10.1136/bmj.330.7482.53

BMJ 2005;330:53-54 (8 January), doi:10.1136/bmj.330.7482.53

Editorial

Physiotherapy for neck and back pain

We need to know who will benefit from which intervention

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Spinal pain is not a new problem. Back strain is mentioned inthe oldest surviving surgical text, the Edwin Smith papyrusfrom 1500 BC. However, the place of mechanical spinal pain inmedicine has changed dramatically over the centuries. As lifeexpectancy and general health conditions have improved, neckand back pain have become major causes of morbidity and healthexpenditure.¹ Back pain was recently estimated to affect around17.3 million people in the United Kingdom at an annual costof £1bn ($1.9bn; ${euro}$ 1.4bn) to the NHS and an additional £565mto private healthcare providers.¹ The recent publication ofthree papers in the BMJ, including one in this issue, addressingthe physiotherapeutic and manipulative treatment of spinal painis therefore timely (p 75).^2-4 It also coincides with the releaseof guidance from the Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Alliance.⁵

The alliance has brought together a multidisciplinary groupto evaluate . . . [Full text of this article]

Nicholas Harvey, clinical research fellow

MRC Epidemiology Resource Centre, University of Southampton, Southampton General Hospital, Southampton SO16 6YD

Cyrus Cooper, professor of rheumatology

MRC Epidemiology Resource Centre, University of Southampton, Southampton General Hospital, Southampton SO16 6YD, (cc@mrc.soton.ac.uk)

CiteULike

Complore

Connotea

Del.icio.us Add to Digg

Digg

StumbleUpon Add to Technorati

Technorati What's this?

Relevant Article

Randomised trial of a brief physiotherapy intervention compared with usual physiotherapy for neck pain patients: outcomes and patients' preference: Jennifer A Klaber Moffett, David A Jackson, Stewart Richmond, Seokyung Hahn, Simon Coulton, Amanda Farrin, Andrea Manca, and David J Torgerson
BMJ 2005 330: 75. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

This article has been cited by other articles:

Wilde, V. E, Ford, J. J, McMeeken, J. M (2007). Indicators of Lumbar Zygapophyseal Joint Pain: Survey of an Expert Panel With the Delphi Technique. ptjournal 87: 1348-1361 [Abstract] [Full text]
Manca, A., Dumville, J. C., Torgerson, D. J., Klaber Moffett, J. A., Mooney, M. P., Jackson, D. A., Eaton, S. (2007). Randomized trial of two physiotherapy interventions for primary care back and neck pain patients: cost effectiveness analysis. Rheumatology (Oxford) 46: 1495-1501 [Abstract] [Full text]

Rapid Responses:

Read all Rapid Responses

Treatment of back and neck pain: Brian J Sweetman
bmj.com, 8 Jan 2005 [Full text]
A personal view on what the authors refer to as the "quagmire that is the management of spinal pain": Linda J Walker
bmj.com, 8 Jan 2005 [Full text]
Personal view: correction: Linda J Walker
bmj.com, 12 Jan 2005 [Full text]
Two rays of hope: Andrew A G Morrice
bmj.com, 13 Jan 2005 [Full text]
The cause of pain in the back and neck: Tariq M Khan
bmj.com, 14 Jan 2005 [Full text]
Physiotherapy for Neck and Back Pain: Charles C Galasko
bmj.com, 26 Aug 2005 [Full text]
Clarification: Cyrus Cooper, et al.
bmj.com, 1 Sep 2005 [Full text]
Re: A personal view on what the authors refer to as the "quagmire that is the management of spinal pain": Robert Goldsmith
bmj.com, 30 Mar 2007 [Full text]