Surgery to relieve chronic lower back pain is no better than intensive rehabilitation and nearly twice as expensive, researchers said Monday.
Low back pain is one of the world's most common complaints. In the 25-nation European Union, it affects over 40 million workers and accounts for nearly half of all sick days.
Researchers at the Nuffield Orthopaedic Center in Oxford, England found little difference when they compared the effects of surgery with rehabilitation on nearly 350 sufferers.
'This is strong evidence that intensive rehabilitation is a good thing to do for people with chronic back pain who are thinking of having about having operations,' said Jeremy Fairbank, an orthopaedic surgeon at the center.
Think twice before back pain surgery
