Exercise prescription for chronic back or neck pain: Who prescribes it? who gets it? What is prescribed?
From: Arthritis Rheum. 2009 Jan 29;61(2):192-200. [Epub ahead of print]
The purpose of this study is to describe exercise prescription in routine clinical practice for individuals with chronic back or neck pain because, although current practice guidelines promote exercise for chronic back and neck pain, little is known about exercise prescription in routine care.
The authors conducted a computer assisted telephone survey of a representative sample of 684 individuals with chronic back or neck pain who saw a physician, chiropractor, and/or physical therapist (PT) in the past 12 months. Individuals were asked about whether they were prescribed exercise, the amount of supervision received, and the type, duration, and frequency of the prescribed exercise. Descriptive and multivariable regression analyses were conducted.
Of the 684 subjects, 48% were prescribed exercise. Of those prescribed exercise, 46% received the prescription from a physical therapist, 29% from a physician, 21% from a chiropractor, and 4% from other. In multivariable analyses, seeing a physical therapist or a chiropractor were the strongest predictors of exercise prescription. The likelihood of exercise prescription was increased in women, those with higher education, and those receiving worker’s compensation. Physical therapists were more likely to provide supervision and prescribe strengthening exercises compared with physicians and chiropractors, and were more likely to prescribe stretching exercises compared with physicians.
Their findings suggest that exercise is being underutilized as a treatment for chronic back and neck pain and, to some extent, that the amount of supervision and types of exercises prescribed do not follow current practice guidelines. Exercise prescription provided by physical therapists appears to be most in line with current guidelines.
