Lordos® lumbar prop – summary of research
Suvi Einola, Hannele Kurikka, Hilkka Louhisalmi
Supervisor: ThL, lehtori, Helena Purola
Lumbar prop users’ experience of back pain and the use of LORDOS® lumbar prop
Oulu University of Applied Sciences, Unit of Health Care and Community Work, Oulu, Finland, 1998
In Finland, the estimated annual cost of back problems is 10-20 billion FIM (1.7-3.4 billion EUR). In addition to causing a finacial burden, back problems also cause a lot of pain and suffering.
Purpose of study
The purpose of the study was to describe the experiences of those suffering from back pain, what kind of people have back pain and the use of the lumbar prop. The study included a total of 50 people living with back pain.
Table 1. Age of participants
| Age in years (y) | f | % |
|---|---|---|
| 1. 21-30 | 5 | 10 |
| 2. 31-40 | 5 | 10 |
| 3. 41-50 | 14 | 28 |
| 4. 51-60 | 13 | 26 |
| 5. 61-70 | 7 | 14 |
| 6. 71- | 6 | 12 |
| Total | 50 | 100 |
Back pain duration
16 people (32%) of the respondents had suffered from back pain for decades. Four of the respondents had failed to respond to the question of the duration of back pain. Table 5 above shows the duration of back pain over the years.
Table 2. Duration of pain
| Period in years | f | % |
|---|---|---|
| 0-5 | 12 | 24 |
| 6-10 | 6 | 12 |
| 11-20 | 12 | 24 |
| 21-> | 16 | 32 |
| does not occur | 4 | 8 |
| Total | 50 | 100 |
20 (40%) of the respondents had used the lumbar prop 4-7 months, 11 people (22%) had used the Board 0-3 or 8-12 months.
Frequency of use of the lumbar prop
Some of the respondents took advantage of the LORDOS® lumbar prop on a daily basis either before going to sleep or both in the morning and in the evening. Some of the respondents used the lumbar prop 2-3 times a week whenever they had back pain. Some used the prop occasionally.
Evaluation of back pain
The following figure shows the pain experienced before the use of a lumbar prop (baseline) and during the use of a lumbar prop (follow-up).
Figure 1 Pain experience and scale
Baseline= situation before starting the use of a lumbar prop
Follow-up = situation after the use of a lumbar prop
Summary
Most respondents had been suffering from back pain for several decades. They described their pain sensations as radiating, burning, shooting, sudden or gnawing. Pain was felt in all parts of the back, occasionally radiating down to the feet. The back pain had affected both work and freetime activities as well as mood. Some of the respondents had been on heavy medication for their back pain. The LORDOS® lumbar prop alleviated the pain.
The use of a lumbar prop
1. alleviated pain
2. helped to relax
3. diminished the need for anelgesics and
4. diminished insomnia .
