Affiliations: [a] Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan | [b] Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Sapporo Maruyama Orthopaedic Hospital, Sapporo, Japan
Correspondence:
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Corresponding author: Izaya Ogon, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, 291, South-1, West-16, Chuo-ku, Sapporo, 060-8543, Japan. Tel.: +81 11 611 2111; Fax: +81 11 641 6026; E-mail: ogon.izaya@sapmed.ac.jp.
Abstract: BACKGROUND: Pain sensitization may be one of the mechanisms contributing to chronic low back pain (CLBP). OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the association between visceral fat, CLBP, and central sensitization (CS); describe the relationship between low back pain (LBP) intensity and CS; and identify possible correlation between visceral fat and LBP intensity. METHODS: Patients with CLBP were divided using their CS inventory (CSI) scores into low- (CSI < 40) and high-CSI (CSI ⩾ 40) subgroups. We compared computed tomography (CT) measurements and scores for association with pain according to the visual analogue scale (VAS) between the two groups. RESULTS: The low-CSI and the high-CSI groups had 47 patients (67.1%; 21 men, 26 women) and 23 patients (32.9%; 11 men and 12 women), respectively. The high-CSI group had a significantly higher mean VAS score (p< 0.01) and estimated mean visceral fat area (p< 0.05) than the low-CSI group. There was a moderate positive correlation between VAS score and visceral fat (standardised partial regression coefficient: 0.659, p< 0.01) in the high-CSI group according to multiple linear regression analysis adjusted for age and sex. CONCLUSIONS: Visceral fat is associated with CLBP, regardless of sex or age, and may be a potential therapeutic target for CLBP with CS.
Keywords: Chronic pain, low back pain, central sensitization, central sensitization inventory, visceral fat
