When Weight Goes, So May Back Pain
People who had gastric bypass report less backache in 6 months

(HealthDay News) -- Losing a lot of weight apparently can help ease an aching back.

Researchers have found that severely obese people who underwent gastric bypass surgery discovered an added benefit: Their back pain improved. In fact, back pain symptom scores six months after surgery were nearly half what they had been before surgery.

"This study provides evidence that substantial weight reduction following bariatric surgery results in moderate reductions in pre-existing back pain within six months of weight loss," the study's author, Dr. Paul Khoueir, from the University of Southern California, said in a prepared statement.

Khoueir presented the findings at an annual meeting of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons.

Back pain afflicts an estimated 85 percent of all people in the United States at some point in their life -- especially if they're overweight. More than 72 million people in the United States , or about a third of all adults, are considered obese. That means they have a body mass index (BMI) higher than 30.

Obese people are more likely to have arthritis affecting the hips and knees, but it's not clear if obesity contributes to degeneration in the spine. And, although people with back pain are often advised to lose weight as part of their treatment regimen, the association between the two conditions has not been well-studied.

Health experts generally suggest gastric bypass surgery only as a last resort, when all other weight loss options have failed, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine. The surgery is considered appropriate for people with a BMI above 40 or those who are more than 100 pounds overweight. It's also an option for people with a BMI of 35 or higher who have a serious medical condition, such as diabetes or heart disease, that could be improved with weight loss.

But the surgery has significant risks, including blood clots, infection, blood loss, heart attack or stroke during surgery, injury to the intestines, stomach or other organs, leaking from the stomach after surgery, gallstones, poor nutrition, kidney stones and a condition called dumping syndrome that occurs when the contents of the stomach move too quickly through the intestines.

Khoueir and his colleagues included 38 gastric bypass patients in their study. Participants averaged 48 years old, and most were women. Their average BMI before the study was 52.

A year after surgery, the average BMI had dropped to 38, and the average weight loss was about 85 pounds.

And with that reduction in weight came a reduction in back pain, the study found. The average scores on a scale designed to measure back pain dropped by 44 percent within six months of the surgery.

"This effect does not appear to be the result of the overall improvement associated with the patient's well-being," Khoueir said. "While this initial research is promising, larger long-term trials are needed to prove the efficacy of this treatment."

On the Web

To learn more about weight-loss surgery, visit the U.S. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.

SOURCES: HealthDay News ; American Association of Neurological Surgeons, news release, April 28, 2008; U.S. National Library of Medicine (www.nlm.nih.gov)
Author: Serena Gordon
Publication Date: May 31, 2009
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