Weather link to back-pain rejected

Friday July 11th, 2014

People sometimes blame the weather for their back-ache - but they are usually wrong, researchers said yesterday.

Only the wind may have some relationship with low back-pain, according to the new study.

Australian researchers checked popular lore about the causes of back-pain by using data from their country's Bureau of Meteorology.

They looked for links with temperature, humidity, air pressure, wind direction and rain.

The study, involving some 993 patients, was reported in Arthritis Care & Research.

Researcher Dr Daniel Steffens, of the George Institute for Global Health at the University of Sydney, Australia, said: “Many patients believe that weather impacts their pain symptoms. Our findings refute previously held beliefs that certain common weather conditions increase risk of lower back pain.

"Further investigation of the influence of weather parameters on symptoms associated with specific diseases such as fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, and osteoarthritis are needed."

Weather Does Not Affect Back Pain: Results from a Case-Crossover Study. Arthritis Care & Research 10 July 2014 [abstract]

Tags: Australia | Pain Relief

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