Хронічний біль у попереку та фактори ризику, що з ним пов’язані: чи є статеві відмінності?

The objective: to evaluate the sex-specific characteristics of chronic low back pain and its associated risk factors to develop more personalized and effective interventions. Materials and methods. A survey of 100 people of working age 18–60 years was conducted to assess the sex characteristics of chronic low back pain and risk factors that can potentiate it. The subjects were interviewed in an online form, which included: socio-demographic and anthropometric data, lifestyle and physical activity data, PSS-10 questionnaire (subjective assessment of stress level) and VAS to study pain intensity in the lower back. Results. The mean value of VAS pain intensity in the lower back among men was 4.94±1.99 points, among women – 4.8±1.7 points (p>0.05). No differences were found between the sexes in terms of marital status and education level. The BMI of men was 28.2±3.39 kg/m2, women – 26.0±5.15 kg/m2, a significant difference between men and women was found (p=0.013). Men are more physically active compared to women and at the same time have a significantly higher (p<0.05) rate of excessive PA, which may be a risk factor for chronic low back pain. Men with chronic low back pain are less likely to catastrophize their health status and assess their health status more optimistically compared to women (х2=14.1; p=0.003). Heavy lifting was associated more with men than women, 32% (CI 6.75–47.59%) of men versus 12% (CI 3.96–17.51%) of women (p<0.05). Smoking habits were also more common among men 38% (CI 4.73–57.19%) than among women 12% (CI 2.16–24.71%) (p<0.05). The average level of stress in men was 16±6.85 units, in women it was 19.2±5.84 and was significantly higher compared to men (p=0.01). Sleep disturbance was found in 48% of men and 66% of women (p<0.05). It was found that 46% of men and 68% of women had comorbidities (p<0.01). Conclusion. Sex-specific features of chronic low back pain and risk factors associated with it have been identified. For men, the following risk factors are typical: overweight, excessive PA, heavy lifting and smoking. For women, the risk factors were low PA, catastrophizing health conditions, prolonged sitting, stress, sleep disturbances and comorbidities.