Fear-avoidance beliefs about back pain in patients with acute LBP.
OBJECTIVE
We aimed to assess fear-avoidance beliefs in patients with acute low back pain (LBP) and to identify features of patients and general practitioners (GPs) associated with patients' fear-avoidance beliefs.


METHODS
A cross-sectional study conducted in primary care practice in France. A total of 709 GPs completed a self-administered questionnaire assessing fear-avoidance beliefs [the Fear-Avoidance Beliefs Questionnaire (FABQ)] and 2,727 patients with acute LBP completed a self-administered questionnaire assessing pain, perceived handicap and disability (on the Quebec Back Pain Disability Scale) and fear-avoidance beliefs (on the FABQ).


RESULTS
Patients' FABQ mean scores were 16.8+/-5.0 for physical activities (FABQ Physical) and 19.5+/-10.9 for occupational activities (FABQ Work). From multivariate analysis, the following factors were associated with patients' FABQ Phys and Work scores: having a GP with a high rating on the FABQ Phys (P=0.0001 and 0.02 for FABQ Phys and Work, respectively), no sport practice (vs. occasional: P=0.0003 and 0.03; vs. usual/competition: P=0.0001 and 0.004), disability score (Quebec) (P=0.0001 for both FABQ scores), and pain intensity (P=0.0012 and 0.0013).


CONCLUSIONS
High levels of fear-avoidance beliefs occur early in LBP patients, and key messages on this topic should probably be delivered at a very early stage of the disease.
Coudeyre
Emmanuel
E
Centre de Médecine Physique et Réadaptation Notre Dame, Avenue Joseph Claussat, Chamalières cedex, Paris, France.
Tubach
Florence
F
Rannou
Francois
F
Baron
Gabriel
G
Coriat
Fernand
F
Brin
Sylvie
S
Revel
Michel
M
Poiraudeau
Serge
S
D000208:Acute Disease; D000328:Adult; D001290:Attitude; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D004651:Employment; D005239:Fear / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D017116:Low Back Pain / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010361:Patients; D010821:Physicians, Family; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires