Assessing Pain, Disability and Quality of Life in Patients Diagnosed With Lumbar Disc Herniation

Aim: Lumbar disc herniation (LDH) is a common condition in young adults, causing pain radiating to the hip and leg and often accompanied by neurological symptoms. LDH leads to significant pain, functional impairment, and reduced quality of life (QoL). This study aimed to examine the associations among pain intensity, disability, and QoL in individuals diagnosed with LDH.Methods: This cross-sectional study included 155 patients (74 females, 81 males; mean age 34.1±7.71 years) who presented to X State Hospital with MRI-confirmed LDH. Pain intensity was assessed with the Visual Analog Scale (VAS), disability with the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), and QoL with the WHOQOL-BREF. Because the study variables were non-normally distributed, associations were analyzed using Spearman’s rank correlation coefficients.Results: Pain intensity showed significant negative correlations with the physical (ρ= −0.281), psychological (ρ= −0.265), social (ρ= −0.205), and environmental (ρ= −0.162) QoL domains (p