Long-term outcomes in multidisciplinary treatment of chronic low back pain: Results of a 13-year follow-up

Patients completing a multidisciplinary pain treatment were contacted to obtain 13-year follow-up information on pain, mood, employment, and general health. Study objectives were to determine if post-treatment improvements were maintained over a lengthy follow-up period and to compare patients' general health to norms of comparably aged persons. Although many studies have demonstrated the short-term effectiveness of multidisciplinary pain treatment programs for chronic low back pain, few studies have documented that these treatment gains are maintained over time. Only two studies have reported patient outcomes on a long-term basis (10+ years). Those studies have documented that patient gains during treatment are generally maintained during follow-up. An attempt was made to contact all patients completing an inpatient chronic back pain rehabilitation program at the University of Iowa's Spine Diagnostic and Treatment Center. Of the 45 participants, 28 were located and 26 agreed to participate in a telephone interview. Analyses of pretreatment and posttreatment data revealed these follow-up participants did not differ from the larger study sample. Patients maintained their treatment gains in all areas (pain intensity and interference, negative mood). Additionally, patients showed levels of general health comparable to similarly aged peers with the exceptions of pain (more pain) and physical functioning (lower functioning, more pain interference). More than half the sample was employed; of those not employed, few reported this was due to pain. The data lend support to the long-term effectiveness of multidisciplinary treatment programs for chronic low back pain.