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The US Department of Defense has provided $1.4 million in funding to the University of Queensland to continue research into back pain as part of an international study.
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Led by the University of Queensland, the three-year project will span Australia and the US and involve some of the world’s most prominent pain researchers.
Dr David Klyne, Fulbright Fellow at the UQ School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, said the study aimed to reveal how pain evolved from a brief acute episode to an ongoing, chronic state.
“Over the last few years our research has helped establish that an overly sensitive central nervous system, driven by inflammation, may play an early key role in this acute to chronic transition. This response is likely shaped by the type of tissue initially injured, such as muscle or nerve, and other factors like sleep and physical activity,” Dr Klyne explained.
Lower back pain is the leading cause of disability globally. It is the sixth most costly condition in the US, and it is the leading cause of medical discharge in the US military.
“Beyond advancing our understanding of the physiology of pain, the project is designed to identify new risk factors for developing chronic pain, particularly back pain, which can be targeted by interventions.
Dr Klyne added, “Understanding how sleep and exercise might be used to target these and other risk factors can help prevent the transition from acute to chronic pain.”
In Australia, up to 80 per cent of the population experience back pain, with direct healthcare costs of $4.8 billion per year.
Dr Klyne said the results of the study would have the potential to quickly translate from research into practice.
“The clinical applicability of these results would be immediate, both in terms of new and refined non-pharmacological treatments for pain as well as influencing advice given by practitioners and strategies advised for self-management,” he explained.
