Group cognitive behavioral therapy may help patients with chronic or acute low-back pain, British researchers say.

While lower back pain ranks as a common cause of disability in the United States, determining what causes a person’s back pain is often challenging. A new Cochrane review on diagnosing back pain finds that no single diagnostic test is good at discriminating between patients who have a herniated disc and patients who do not, according to lead author Danielle van der Windt…

Cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia significantly improved sleep for patients with chronic neck or back pain and also reduced the extent to which pain interfered with their daily functioning, according to a study by University of Rochester Medical Center researchers. The study, published online by the journal Sleep Medicine, demonstrates that a behavioral intervention can help patients who already are taking medications for pain and might be reluctant or unable to take additional drugs to treat sleep disturbance…

Despite limited evidence of long-term success in using opioid pain medications for chronic low back pain, opioid prescribing has increased in recent years for back pain and other non-cancer pain indications. The implications are controversial as published studies provide little evidence indicating which patients will benefit from long-term opioid treatment. New research, published in The Journal of Pain, identifies predictors of long-term opioid use among patients with chronic back pain caused by lumbar spine conditions…

A new guideline issued by the American Academy of Neurology finds that transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation (TENS), a widely used pain therapy involving a portable device, is not recommended to treat chronic low-back pain pain that has persisted for three months or longer because research shows it is not effective. The guideline is published in the December 30, 2009, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology…

Transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation (TENS) is not recommended for chronic low back pain that has lasted for at least three months, according to a new guideline issued by the American Academy of Neurology.

To most of us the holiday season is all about tradition, fun, and family, but if we’re not careful, the holidays can also be a pain in the neck-literally-says the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). Typical holiday activities, such as shopping “till you drop,” lifting heavy boxes and presents, and countless hours of cooking and baking, can cause muscles to work harder than usual, many times resulting in neck, shoulder, and back pain…

To most of us the holiday season is all about tradition, fun, and family, but if we’re not careful, the holidays can also be a pain in the neck-literally-says the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). Typical holiday activities, such as shopping “till you drop,” lifting heavy boxes and presents, and countless hours of cooking and baking, can cause muscles to work harder than usual, many times resulting in neck, shoulder, and back pain…

Whether the result of injury, illness or a chronic condition, 70 million Americans experience pain annually. The individual pain sufferer may experience a diminished quality of life, lack of mobility and added stress. For the country as a whole, pain has far-reaching cost implications.

Using a branch of science that crosses disciplines to study complex problems, a Michigan State University researcher is introducing a new way to understand and treat lower back pain, a condition affecting more than 40 million Americans and costing billions of dollars each year. N. Peter Reeves, a researcher in Osteopathic Surgical Specialties in MSU’s College of Osteopathic Medicine, is studying the spine using systems science, which became popular in the early 20th century…