Guideline adherence and lost workdays for acute low back pain in the California workers' compensation system.

ABSTRACT:

Context

The use of clinical-practice guidelines is a suggested method for improving health outcomes by the earlier provision of necessary and effective medical interventions.

Objective

To quantify the influence of adherence to guideline-recommended interventions in the first week of treatment for an initial low back pain (LBP) injury on lost workdays.

Methods

In a retrospective cohort of California's workers' compensation claims data from May 2009 to May 2018, 41 diagnostic and treatment interventions were abstracted from the medical claims for workers with acute LBP injuries and compared with guideline recommendations. Lost workdays within 1-year post-injury were compared by guideline adherence using quantile regressions.

Results

Of the 59,656 workers who met

SUBMITTER: Gaspar FW 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8211224 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature