Older Patients More Likely to be Given Only Painkillers for Lower Back Pain

A new study found older patients with lower back pain are more likely to be given only painkillers after consultation, according to findings in Pain. Researchers studied more than 15,000 patients over the age of 25 and found the prevalence of lower pain back was 28.5 percent. Prevalence peaked from age 41-50, but one in four patients over the age of 80 reported lower pain back. Researchers also found patients aged 70 and older were 1.74 times more likely to only be prescribed painkillers than 40-year-old patients and 1.45 times more likely to be prescribed painkillers with other medications. Patients over 70 were less likely to be prescribed physical therapy or exercise.


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