Occupational and nonoccupational risk indicators for incident and chronic low back pain in a sample of the swedish general population during a 4-year period: An influence of depression?

The objectives of this study were to examine the relation between occupational and nonoccupational conditions and both incident (IBLP) and chronic low back pain (CLBP), aswellasdepression, among women and men. Data from a4-year follow-up of a study group consisting of 420 participants of both genders from the general Swedish population were analysed. Occupational risk indicators were predictors for both ILBP and CLBP. Depression was not found to be a predictor for either IBLP or CLBP among women, but was a predictor for CLBP among men. Among women, depression had some risk indicators in common with ILBP and appeared to be a concurrent outcome rather than a risk indicator. Low back pain in 1993 was not a predictor for depression in 1997 in either women or men. Occupational conditions are of relevance in relation to both incident and CLBP. Nonoccupational conditions were stronger predictors for CLBP than for ILBP but had some predictive value also for ILBP.