Five myths about lower back pain
You may think you know what causes lower back pain, but you're probably wrong.
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Articles on Back pain
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Teenage pain often dismissed as ‘growing pains’, but it can impact their lives
The blame for pain in kids is often directed at school bags, computer and small-screen device usage, posture, or other biomechanical targets.
Unexplained lower back pain? It could be ankylosing spondylitis
Roughly a quarter of patients under 45 years suffering ongoing lower-back pain without an obvious other cause will have the disease ankylosing spondylitis.
Explainer: can you cure bad posture?
We often think of posture as a physical thing – but our minds play a crucial part too.
Costly and harmful: we need to tame the tsunami of too much medicine
The evidence suggests too much medicine is doing us harm, particularly when treating knee pain, back pain, chest pain and screening for prostate cancer.
Less is the new more: choosing medical tests and treatments wisely
Not so long ago, getting an x-ray for acute back pain was the norm. And they are still used far more frequently than is necessary.
Using paracetamol for low back pain does more harm than good
People seeing a doctor for low back pain are often told to take paracetamol. But a study published today shows the drug is ineffective for the condition and its prolonged use has harmful side effects.
Weight machines and stretching increase risk of lower back pain
Researchers have found people who use weight training machines and stretching as part of their exercise routines are at a…
Put down the paracetamol, it’s just a placebo for low back pain
People with lower back pain are usually told to take some paracetamol for relief. But research published today shows that this almost universal advice is misguided. Up to 90% of the population will experience…
Back pain: the spiralling effects of a problem no one can see
Almost all of us have either had it, or can look forward to getting it in our lifetime. In fact, somewhere between about a tenth to a third of us have back pain right now. So is back pain just something…
Health Check: how high heels harm and how to make it better
High-heeled shoes are thought to characterise femininity and beauty, making the wearer feel self-assured and elegant. But they also alter alignment of the feet, legs, and back, and can have long-term effects…
Health Check: how do you choose over-the-counter painkillers?
If you’re anything like me, your medicine cupboard is chockers with various non-prescription pain remedies: liquids, pills, capsules, children’s painkillers, formulations that are “gentle on the stomach…
Monday’s medical myth: crossing your legs is bad for your health
Almost everyone crosses their legs, whether it’s conscious or unconscious, for custom, for comfort, for effect, to stop your legs splaying, to take pressure off a foot, or for no reason at all. But is…
Targeted therapies can help alleviate back pain: study
Changing the way people think and move can have a huge impact on their experience of unexplained lower back pain, a study…
Sciatica pain: epidural injections not the answer
Epidural corticosteroid injections offer little benefit to sciatica sufferers, a study has found. Sciatica is lower back…
Preventing back pain will require rethinking how we work
Nearly 10% of Australians (1.8 million people) have back problems, according to a report released today by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) (based on data from the 2007-08 National…
Mental illness more common in those with back problems
Australians living with back problems are 2.5 times more likely to experience a depressive disorder than the wider population…
Top contributors
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Clinical Senior Lecturer at Deakin University School of Medicine & Pain Specialist, Deakin University
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Research Fellow and Program Manager at Hunter New England Local Health District, and Hunter Medical Research Institute, University of Newcastle, University of Newcastle
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Adjunct Professor of Preventive Medicine, Baker IDI Heart & Diabetes Institute
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Professor & CEO of the Institute for Safety, Compensation and Recovery Research, Monash University
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Senior Research Fellow, Bond University
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Professor of Public Health, Bond University
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Orthopaedic Surgeon, Rheumatologist & Associate Professor, WA Institute for Medical Research, University of Western Australia
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Senior Research Fellow, Musculoskeletal Division, The George Institute for Global Health, University of Sydney
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Professor of Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy, Curtin University
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Professor of Clinical Epidemiology, Bond University
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Lecturer in Podiatry, Charles Sturt University
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Professor of Health Sciences, Norges Helsehøỵskole Campus Kristiania, and Senior Research Fellow, Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick
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Principal Research Fellow and Head of the Paediatric Program, University of Sydney
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Associate Professor in Medicine, The University of Sydney, Sydney Medical Foundation Fellow & Senior Research Fellow, George Institute for Global Health
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Programme Leader - Physiotherapy, University of Huddersfield
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