People with severe back pain may be suffering from a genetic condition, British researchers have reported.
Researchers at King’s College London, UK, have now found a gene linked to degeneration of the discs of the spine.
The findings come from a study of some 4,600 people for whom researchers had complete genetic information. They underwent MRI scanning to establish any signs of spine degeneration.
The researchers said this showed a gene called PARK2 was involved.
The findings have been reported in the Annals of Rheumatic Diseases.
Researcher Dr Frances Williams said: "Back pain can have a serious impact on people’s lives and is one of the most common causes of sickness leave, costing both the NHS and UK economy billions each year.
"We know that people whose discs wear out are at increased risk of episodes of lower back pain, but normal human discs are hard to get hold of to study so until now our knowledge of normal human biology was incomplete.
"Further work by disc researchers to define the role of this gene will, we hope, shed light on one of most important causes of lower back pain.
"It is feasible that if we can build on this finding and improve our knowledge of the condition, we may one day be able to develop new, more effective treatments for back pain caused by this common condition."
Novel genetic variants associated with lumbar disc degeneration in northern Europeans. Annals of Rheumatic Diseases September 21 2012
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