Relationship between Physical Activity and Low Back Pain among Undergraduate Students in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Abstract

A common global health issue that affects people of all ages is low back pain (LBP). Although levels of physical activity have a major role, few studies have been done on the association between LBP and physical activity in undergraduate students, who frequently lead sedentary lifestyles as a result of their educational responsibilities. Eighty-one undergraduate students in Kuala Lumpur participated in this study, which examined the relationship between physical activity, sociodemographic characteristics, and the severity of LBP. The Aberdeen Low Back Pain Scale and the International Physical Activity Questionnaire, Short Form were filled out by participants using Google Forms consisting of a few questionnaire which is sociodemographic, Physical activity and low back pain questions The majority of participants (53.1%) reported a moderate level of physical activity, while the severity of their LBP was low in 55.6%, moderate in 32.1%, and high in 12.3% of cases. Sociodemographic characteristics and the severity of LBP were not significantly associated (p > 0.05). The level of physical activity and the amount of time spent sitting each day were found to be significant predictors of the severity of LBP using logistic regression. Low LBP severity was more likely to be reported by students who sat for fewer than four hours each day (OR = 8.38,p<0.05). Furthermore, individuals who were more physically inactive (OR = 19.34, p<0.01) were more likely to have severe LBP than active people. In order to lessen the severity of LBP, the results emphasize the significance of encouraging physical activity and cutting down on sitting time, as well as the high prevalence of moderate-to-severe LBP among health sciences students.