Digitally Delivered Exercise and Education Treatment for Low Back Pain: 3 Months Follow-up

Low back pain (LBP) is the 4th leading cause of Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) among adults aged 25-49.. According to evidence-based clinical guidelines, exercise and education constitute the first-line intervention. In an attempt to support the implementation of the guidelines, the BetterBack Modell of Care (MoC), a face-to-face concept including exercise and education, was developed and tested in primary care clinics in Sweden since 2017.

The BetterBack (MoC) is a package of education and training that includes structured assessment by a physiotherapist, information on cause and prognosis for LBP and individualised exercise. BetterBack has so far shown that physiotherapists experience increased self-efficacy for assessing and treating patients with LBP and that patients experience improved knowledge for self-care. Despite clinical guidelines for LBP, there is a gap between guidelines and what is offered to patients with LBP, and valuable health resources are still used for examinations and treatments that are proven ineffective or even harmful.

Traditional face-to-face interventions present barriers, such as limited access and lack of flexibility, which may limit the patients' adherence with the interventions. Digital delivery of the management program may be one way of overcoming such barriers. Telehealth, defined as the 'delivery of healthcare at a distance using information and communication technology' (ICT) could be a solution to many access barriers and has been rapidly adopted by many healthcare professions and accelerating even more throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

Literature investigating the use of telehealth for the management of musculoskeletal pain is growing. Systematic reviews have demonstrated that telehealth can provide improvements in pain, physical function and disability that are similar to that of usual face-to-face care for individuals with musculoskeletal conditions such as osteoarthritis and non-specific low back pain. The use of telehealth also seems to increase exercise adherence for a variety of musculoskeletal conditions. However, there is a vast heterogeneity between studies included in these systematic reviews with respect to the intervention (type of exercise and education) and the ICT strategy provided, highlighting the need for further evidence-based digital programs to strengthen these findings.

Joint Academy® (JA), a digitally delivered treatment program with exercise and education was developed to increase access to and facilitate implementation of guideline derived and evidence-based treatment for musculoskeletal pain. The first JA program was introduced in 2016 for persons with hip- and knee OA and showed reduced pain and improved function. A recent randomized controlled trial on patients with knee OA showed that the digital program was superior to usual care. During 2021, a similar programme for persons with LBP, inspired by the Swedish face-to-face Better Back MoC was introduced.