Association between Body Composition and Chronic Low Back Pain in Korean Adults Aged over 50 Years: The Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) 2010–2011

BACKGROUND: The relationship between overweight or obesity and low back pain (LBP) has previously been investigated. Several recent studies have focused on the relationship between other indicators of obesity, particularly indicators of fat, and the risk of LBP. However, the results of body composition and LBP have been inconsistent. METHODS: All data for the present retrospective, cross-sectional study were extracted from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) versions V-1 and 2 conducted in 2010 and 2011 by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In KNHANES V-1 (2010) and V-2 (2011), those over 50 years of age who completed the surveys on LBP, body weight, and body composition assessed using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry were included. The multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to examine the relationship between the presence of chronic LBP and body composition adjusting for confounders. RESULTS: We analyzed 3,579 persons who completed the question. In the multivariable analyses adjusting for age and sex, none of the variables, including fat mass and fat-free mass, remained positively or negatively associated with LBP. Additionally, when depression, smoking, alcohol intake, physical activity, diabetes mellitus, osteoporosis, and fat or lean tissue mass were included in the multivariable logistic model, no significant associations were found between all measures of fat mass, fat-free mass, and LBP. CONCLUSION: The results of this study are contrary to previous studies which concluded that there is a correlation between obesity and fat mass and LBP. Our study shows that LBP is not associated with increased levels of obesity and fat mass.