NCBI

organisation

StatPearls (NCBI Bookshelf)
Updated July 2023
TITLE

Back Safety

90% Lifetime Prevalence in Nurses

SOURCE

REFERENCE
146
NICE
REFERENCE
123

organisation

StatPearls (NCBI Bookshelf)

Updated July 2023
TITLE

Back Safety

90% Lifetime Prevalence in Nurses

SOURCE

This reference article covers how back injuries happen in daily life and at work, and what actually works to prevent them, with a particular focus on healthcare workers such as nurses, who face especially high occupational risk of low back pain.

What was studied?

It covers occupational and lifestyle risk factors for low back pain, the cost of back pain to healthcare systems, and a five-level prevention framework ranging from broad public health measures to individual rehabilitation.

What did they find?

Nurses face a 90% lifetime prevalence of low back pain versus 70% in the general population. Manual handling is the leading occupational risk factor, and every dollar spent on handling training returned about $3.71 in reduced injury costs.

Why it matters

It sets out practical, evidence-based ways to prevent back injury in daily life and at work, showing prevention training is genuinely cost-effective rather than just a generic wellbeing recommendation with no real backing.

Why we included it

It illustrates why everyday prevention advice, safe lifting, posture and workplace ergonomics, counts as genuine, cost-effective evidence-based care, not just generic lifestyle tips with no real backing.