title: Military rank and the symptoms of lumbar disc herniation in young Korean soldiers.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  There are many factors associated with the symptom presentation of lumbar disc herniation (LDH). However, there are only few reports regarding the clinical feature of LDH in military medicine. The objective of this study is to determine the factors that affected the symptoms of LDH in young Korean soldiers.
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred thirty male soldiers, diagnosed with LDH, were enrolled in this study. They were divided into four groups, according to their military ranks: private, private first class, corporal, and sergeant. The visual analog scale for low back pain (VAS-LBP), the VAS for leg pain (VAS-LP), and the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) were evaluated. The education level and military rank were also reviewed and their relationship with the degree of symptoms was investigated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean age for the male subjects enrolled was 20.7 ± 1.2. The mean VAS-LBP, VAS-LP, and ODI were 6.6% ± 1.7%, 7.1% ± 1.9%, and 46.0% ± 16.3%, respectively. There was no statistically significant relationship between the degree of symptoms and the radiologic findings. However, the military rank had an inverse correlation with the VAS scores and the ODI (P < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our data showed that the military rank was associated with the symptom presentation of LDH and reflected the characteristics of military life.
authors: Department of Neurosurgery, Spine Center, Chuncheon Sacred Heart Hospital, College of Medicine, Hallym University, Chuncheon, Korea. Electronic address: nscharisma@hanmail.net.
authors: Suk Hyung
authors: SH
authors: Kang
authors: Department of Neurosurgery, Spine Center, Chuncheon Sacred Heart Hospital, College of Medicine, Hallym University, Chuncheon, Korea. Electronic address: yiyaseo@gmail.com.
authors: Jin Seo
authors: JS
authors: Yang
authors: Department of Neurosurgery, Spine Center, Chuncheon Sacred Heart Hospital, College of Medicine, Hallym University, Chuncheon, Korea.
authors: Yong Jun
authors: YJ
authors: Cho
authors: Department of Neurosurgery, Chung-Ang University College of Medicine, Dongjak, Seoul, Korea.
authors: Seung Won
authors: SW
authors: Park
authors: Department of Preventive Medicine, Gachon University of Medicine and Science, Guwol 1-dong, Namdong-gu, Inchon, Korea.
authors: Kwang Pil
authors: KP
authors: Ko
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D004522:Educational Status; D006801:Humans; D007405:Intervertebral Disc Displacement / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000473:pathology; D017116:Low Back Pain / Q000209:etiology; D008159:Lumbar Vertebrae / Q000473:pathology*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008889:Military Personnel / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D019635:Neurosurgical Procedures; D010147:Pain Measurement; D056910:Republic of Korea / Q000453:epidemiology; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Correlation study; Lumbar disc herniation; Social class; Worker's compensation