Paracetamol and gentle exercise effective for back pain

Australian research published in a recent issue of the British medical journal, The Lancet, has found that paracetamol and gentle exercise is just as effective as expensive therapies to treat lower back pain.

Australians suffering from lower back pain may spend more than a billion dollars a year trying to find relief. Some of the more expensive forms of treatment are by chiropractors and physiotherapists, while over the counter anti-inflammatory drugs are often the first thing sufferers reach for when pain occurs.

But there has been concern over the side effects of some non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs which was part of the reason why Mark Hancock from the Back Pain Research Group at Sydney University studied 240 patients suffering with acute lower back pain.

All had been given paracetamol and advice from their GP. They were then randomly divided into four groups. Some were given placebo therapy and placebo drugs. Others were given anti-inflammatory drugs, or spinal manipulative therapy, or both.

The study concluded that spinal manipulative therapy and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs did not necessarily lead to faster recovery from acute lower back pain. However, staying reasonably active was good for acute lower back pain.