The longitudinal effects of a physical activity programme on the physical fitness and disability of back pain patients: Service evaluation.

Objective: To evaluate the longitudinal effect of a group physical activity service to help patients self-manage un-resolving back pain.

Background: Back pain is one of the most common and costly conditions. Large scale trials have demonstrated a role for less traditional treatment including exercise, yet the long term effects of patient centred, group physical activity programmes remains unclear.

Person-Centered, Physical Activity for Patients with Low Back Pain: Piloting Service Delivery.

Low back pain (LBP) is one of the most common and costly conditions in industrialized countries. Exercise therapy has been used to treat LBP, although typically using only one mode of exercise. This paper describes the method and initial findings of a person-centered, group physical activity programme which featured as part of a multidisciplinary approach to treating LBP.

Low back pain: what determines functional outcome at six months? An observational study.

Background: The rise in disability due to back pain has been exponential with escalating medical and societal costs. The relative contribution of individual prognostic indicators to the pattern of recovery remains unclear. The objective of this study was to determine the prognostic value of demographic, psychosocial, employment and clinical factors on outcome in patients with low back pain

Methods: A prospective cohort study with six-month follow-up was undertaken at a multidisciplinary back pain clinic in central London employing physiotherapists, osteopaths, clinical psychologists and physicians, receiving referrals from 123 general practitioners.