Prevalence of Lower Back Pain and its Associations with Lifestyle Behaviors among College Students in Saudi Arabia

Abstract Research question Lower back pain (LBP) is a common musculoskeletal disorder that may affect the daily living of students. Recent psychological research showed a relevant connection between LBP and multidimensional health. However, the association between LBP and lifestyle behavior was not established yet in which improving the knowledge in this area of research may help in establishing preventive strategies and optimizing the quality of life of college students. Methods A cross-sectional study of 1420 college students in Saudi Arabia was conducted and recruited from May 2021 to November 2021. An established online survey was utilized to assess LBP, sleep quality, sedentary duration, health responsibility, physical activity, nutrition, spiritual growth, interpersonal relationships, and stress management. Results LBP was prevalent among college students from Saudi Arabia. There were significant differences between students with and without LBP in age, BMI, sex, marital status, pain severity, overall lifestyle behavior, health responsibility, physical activity, nutrition, stress management, and global sleep quality. After controlling for Age, BMI, sex, and marital status, there were significant associations between pain severity and global sleep quality (ß=.2, p < .001), and sedentary duration (ß=.03, p = .01) Conclusions The study helped in defining the prevalence of LBP in college students in Saudi Arabia, and evaluating the association between LBP and lifestyle behaviors. Promoting sleep quality and sedentary behavior may help in establishing preventive strategies of LBP for college students.