A collection of papers published in The Lancet that expose the global impact of low back pain and ineffectiveness of current medical treatments, while highlighting the value of spinal manipulation and other nondrug options before turning to NSAIDs, is receiving substantial media attention.
One of the brightest spotlights: "Good Morning America," which aired a "Health Alert" segment captioned "New Research on Lower Back Pain: Are Millions of People Getting Ineffective Treatment?" The segment highlighted the main points in the papers, emphasizing that spinal manipulation and other forms of conservative care should be prioritized over medication when treating low back pain.
"GMA" anchor Robin Roberts opened the segment with this statement to the show's estimated 4.5 million viewers regarding lower back pain: "As many as 540 million people suffer from it. According to new research, many treatments, [including surgery and pain medication] ... could be all wrong."
She then introduced Dr. Jennifer Ashton, chief health and medical editor for the show. Dr. Ashton, who described the papers as the "magnum opus on low back pain" and The Lancet as "very reputable," said the material "[draws] attention to the massive gap that exists between evidence-based medicine and what's really going on" when it comes to the treatment of back pain.
According to Dr. Ashton, reporting on the papers, back pain is a "massive global public health burden." First-line treatments include staying active ("the worst thing you can do is get in bed") and education: learning "what works and doesn't from reputable sources." Second-line treatment options ("This is really what I want people to pay attention to," she said) include superficial heat, spinal manipulation, massage and acupuncture. [Our emphasis]
Dr. Ashton added that NSAID medication is also considered a second-line treatment, but should be utilized "only if the other things are not working."
Click here to watch the "Good Morning America" segment and here for free full text of The Lancet papers.
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