Abstract: Background and Aim: Chronic low back pain is one of the most common debilitating occupational diseases. It seems that the frequency of this type of back pain is increasing, especially among young military staff. We aimed to evaluate the causes of chronic low back pain according to interpretation of MRI reports in military personnel of Army Ground Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Materials and Methods: In a descriptive cross-sectional study, the data of military personnel with chronic low back pain, referred to the Neurosurgery Council of Khanevadeh Hospital, Tehran in 2016 were extracted. The information included demographic and occupational characteristics of the patients, clinical findings, and MRI reports. We used chi-square and Fischer exact tests for analysis of the data at a significant level of 95%. Results: 326 male military personnel with chronic low back pain were evaluated. The mean age of the subjects was 37.3 ± 0.6 years. The most common MRI finding was disc herniation in 174 cases (53.3%), and the most common military occupation was epic, in 114 cases (34.9%). There was no statistically significant correlation between MRI findings and types of military occupations (p=0.071). The highest frequency of disc herniation belonged to personnel ranged from 20 to 29 years (p=0.002) and the highest frequency of degenerative changes was seen in personnel over 50 years (p=0.005). Conclusion: The most important finding of this study was the low mean age of patients with chronic low back pain who were in their active working years. We suggest revising the process of periodic examinations of military personnel, ergonomics of the work environment and military training.
Keywords:MRI, Chronic Low back pain, Military Staff, Spondylodiscitis, Spondylolisthesis,Intervertebral Disc Herniation