Effect of Telerehabilitation Use in the Treatment of Non-specific Chronic Low Back Pain in the Brazilian Afrodescendants

Launched by UNIVERSITY OF SAO PAULO GENERAL HOSPITAL · May 29, 2024

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This Brazil-based study is testing whether a telerehabilitation program that combines graded activity exercises with an educational approach helps adults with nonspecific chronic low back pain more than an educational program alone. About 102 Afro-Brazilian adults, ages 18–65, who have had low back pain for at least 3 months and a pain score of 3 or higher, will be eligible. To join, you’d need internet access and a device (phone, tablet, or computer), be able to read and speak Portuguese, and meet other health criteria (for example, no recent lumbar surgery or inflammatory disease, and not pregnant).

If you participate, you’ll be randomly assigned to either the graded activity plus education group or the education-only control group and complete 12 online sessions over about 4 weeks. You’ll also keep a diary of symptoms and barriers and have online check-ins at about 1, 3, and 6 months. The study’s main goal is to see if the graded-activity program reduces pain (measured on a 0–10 scale) and improves function, quality of life, anxiety, and fear-avoidance beliefs, compared with education alone. Researchers will also ask about experiences of discrimination when seeking healthcare for back pain. Everything is designed to be done remotely, and key parts of the study are kept blind to reduce bias. Enrollment is ongoing, led by the University of Sao Paulo General Hospital, with completion anticipated in 2024–2025.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • Self-identify as Black (Black or Brown), according to Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) classification;
• • Age range from 18 to 65 years old;
• • Both biological sexes (female and male);
• • Sedentary or physically active participants;
• • Present chronic low back pain with a score ≥ 3 on the Numeric Pain Rating Scale for more than 3 months and due to nonspecific causes;
• • Able to read, write, and speak Brazilian Portuguese;
• • Live in Brazil in urban or rural areas;
• • Have access to the internet;
• • Possess a device with internet access with a screen, camera, microphone, and speaker (smartphone, tablet, or computer); and
• • Have a reasonable self-assessment ability to use the internet (through a 4-item scale from poor, fair, good to excellent).
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • History of traumatic injury.
• • Previous surgery related to the lumbar spine.
• • Undergoing cancer treatment.
• • Presenting with any inflammatory rheumatological condition.
• • Decompensated cardiovascular disorders.
• • Presence of comorbidity or condition that may hinder active participation in the prescribed exercises to be performed at home.
• • Severe psychological disorders.
• • Pregnant individuals.
• • Awaiting surgical procedure.
• • Having undergone intervention including exercise or physiotherapeutic treatment in the last 3 months.