title: Treatment of low back pain: Second extended follow up of an original trial (NCT00600197) comparing a multidisciplinary group-based rehabilitation program with oral drug treatment alone up to 30 months.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of the extended 30-month follow-up of an original trial (NCT00600197) which has been published in the Clinical Journal of Pain.
  
  
  METHODS
  Seventy-four percent (146/197) of the participants who had taken part in the original study, including 69 patients in the intervention group and 77 patients in the control group, were followed up to 30 months after intervention. The intervention group continued receiving monthly motivational consultation and booster classes plus oral medication but the other group received just medication. Data on measures from the Short Form 36 (SF-36), Quebec Disability Scale (QDS) and Ronald Morris Disability Questionnaire (RDQ) were collected at 3-, 6-, 12-, 18-, 24- and 30-month follow-ups and analyzed through repeated measures analysis of variance.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The two groups were comparable regarding all baseline characteristics (P > 0.05) except for education level and mental health, which were better in the intervention group (P < 0.05). The two groups improved regarding all studied variables over time up to 30 months (P < 0.001). Moreover, the intervention group in comparison with the control group had consistently better outcomes regarding all variables. There were significant differences within each group by time in terms of mental health (P = 0.01) and disability measured through QDS (P = 0.005) and RDQ (P = 0.014).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The proposed multidisciplinary program could improve mental health and disability up to 30 months in chronic low back pain patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Education, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Sedigheh S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Tavafian
authors.affiliation: Rheumatology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Ahmad R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Jamshidi
authors.affiliation: Departments of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Kazem
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mohammad
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D000328:Adult; D000700:Analgesics / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D059350:Chronic Pain / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D003376:Counseling; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D017116:Low Back Pain / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D008297:Male; D008603:Mental Health; D008875:Middle Aged; D059408:Pain Management / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000379:methods*; D010147:Pain Measurement; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000700:Analgesics
keywords: chronic low back pain; health related quality of life; multidisciplinary treatment; oral drug treatment