Article

As the biopsychosocial model of health has become increasingly understood, it has
become clear that there are complex, interdependent relationships between the
physical and biomedical features of low back pain and the psychological and
social factors that present concomitantly. Epidemiological studies have not only
highlighted that psychological and social factors are associated with back pain
and disability but also have shed light on the way in which these factors serve
as prognostic indicators, or obstacles to recovery, predicting which patients
will have a poor prognosis. Integrating the assessment of these obstacles to
recovery into physical therapist practice and using this information to guide
clinical decision making have the potential to improve the quality of care
offered by physical therapists by improving the targeting of treatments to
individuals and enhancing the therapist-patient relationship and adherence to
management advice and treatment programs. In turn, such approaches may improve
both patients' clinical outcomes and the efficiency and effectiveness of service
provision, helping direct interventions to those who need them. This article
summarizes the key challenges to embedding psychosocial perspectives within
physical therapist practice for patients with low back pain and the opportunities
that could be realized by doing so, and it highlights new developments in
research, clinical practice, and education that are shaping future directions in
this field.

Langue : ANGLAIS