title: Influence of living environments and working status on low back pain for survivors of the Great East Japan Earthquake.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The Great East Japan Earthquake and devastating Tsunami caused irreparable damage on the northeastern coast of Japan. This study aimed to examine the influencing factors of "Living environment" and "Working status" on low back pain for the survivors of the earthquake evaluated by a self-report questionnaire.
  
  
  METHODS
  Between 2011 and 2013, survivors replied to the self-report questionnaire, and 986 people consented to join this study. The living environment was divided into 3 categories (1. Living in the same house as before the earthquake, 2. Living in a safe shelter or temporary small house, 3. Living in a house of relatives or apartment house) and working status was divided into 5 categories (1. Unemployed before the earthquake, 2. Unemployed after the earthquake, 3. Decrease in income, 4. Different occupation after the earthquake, 5. The same occupation as before the earthquake). Age, gender, living areas, past history of arthritis, arthropathy, osteoporosis, sleep disturbance, psychological distress, and economic status were considered as confounding factors. Generalized estimating regression models with logit link function were used because outcome variables are repeatedly measured and binomial. We evaluated the correlation between the presence/severity of low back pain over time and housing status/working status at 1 year after the earthquake.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were no significant differences between age, gender, living areas, working status, or living environment before or after the earthquake. There was no significant difference in the risk of having low back pain in living environment or gender. There was significant difference in the risk of having low back pain in those with "Decrease in income" (OR = 1.93, 95% CI = 1.23-3.03) and "The same occupation as before the earthquake" (OR = 1.67, 95% CI = 1.1-2.52).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Though living environment has little effect, "Decrease in income" and "The same occupation as before the earthquake" have strong influences on low back pain.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Tohoku University School of Medicine, 2-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8574, Japan. Electronic address: hagi@med.tohoku.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Yoshihiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hagiwara
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Tohoku University School of Medicine, 2-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8574, Japan.
authors.forename: Yutaka
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yabe
authors.affiliation: Division of Epidemiology, Department of Public Health and Forensic Medicine, Tohoku University, 2-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8575, Japan.
authors.forename: Yumi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sugawara
authors.affiliation: Center for Community Health, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Division of Women's Health Nursing, Course of Nursing, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, 2-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8575, Japan.
authors.forename: Mari
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.affiliation: Division of Epidemiology, Department of Public Health and Forensic Medicine, Tohoku University, 2-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8575, Japan.
authors.forename: Takashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Tohoku University School of Medicine, 2-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8574, Japan.
authors.forename: Kenji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kanazawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Tohoku University School of Medicine, 2-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8574, Japan.
authors.forename: Kazuaki
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sonofuchi
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Tohoku University School of Medicine, 2-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8574, Japan.
authors.forename: Masashi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Koide
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Tohoku University School of Medicine, 2-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8574, Japan.
authors.forename: Takuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sekiguchi
authors.affiliation: Tohoku Fukushi University, 6-149-1, Kunimigaoka, Sendai 989-3201, Japan.
authors.forename: Masahiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tsuchiya
authors.affiliation: Division of Epidemiology, Department of Public Health and Forensic Medicine, Tohoku University, 2-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8575, Japan.
authors.forename: Ichiro
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Tsuji
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Tohoku University School of Medicine, 2-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8574, Japan.
authors.forename: Eiji
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Itoi
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000328:Adult; D055866:Earthquakes; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006798:Housing; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D017116:Low Back Pain / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012931:Social Environment; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D017741:Survivors / Q000706:statistics & numerical data