Chronic Nonspecific Back Pain

— Back pain is a main cause of disability and greatly affects life quality and the healthcare cost. The objective of the study was to identify the factors that are associated with the development of chronic musculoskeletal back pain in the working age population. A main group included 144 patients with chronic musculoskeletal back pain. Of these, 89 (61.8%) were women and 55 (38.2%) were men. The median age of the patients was 43 [39; 48] years. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was performed using Magnetom Symphony and Magnetom Verio (Siemens, Germany) machines at a magnetic field strength of 1.5 T and revealed intervertebral disc protrusions extending less than 3 mm beyond the edge of the vertebral body without compressing the spinal nerve roots and spinal nerves. A comparison group included 37 healthy subjects (22 women and 15 men, median age 40 [30; 49] years). Significant factors associated with chronic back pain in the working age population were found to include tobacco smoking ( p = 0.000), elevated body mass index (BMI) ( p = 0.0033), sedentary lifestyle and lack of physical activity ( p = 0.000), intense use of computer technologies at work and at home for at least 5 days a week ( p = 0.000), and usage of a smartphone or a tablet in a prone position for at least 3 hours a day ( p = 0.025). The conclusion is that both clinical and behavioral characteristics of patients, as well as their occupational and leisure-time physical activities, are necessary to identify the factors predisposing to development of chronic skeletomuscular back pain.