Cognitive Functional Therapy for People with Nonspecific Persistent Low Back Pain in a Secondary Care Setting-A Propensity Matched, Case-Control Feasibility Study

BACKGROUND: Effective, inexpensive, and low-risk interventions are needed for patients with nonspecific persistent low back pain (NS-PLBP) who are unresponsive to primary care interventions. Cognitive functional therapy (CFT) is a multidimensional behavioral self-management approach that has demonstrated promising results in primary care and has not been tested in secondary care.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of CFT and compare it with usual care for patients with NS-PLBP.

DESIGN: Case-control study.

SETTING: A secondary care spine center.

SUBJECTS: Thirty-nine patients received a CFT intervention and were matched using propensity scoring to 185 control patients receiving usual care.

METHODS: The primary outcome was Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire (0-100 scale) score. Group-level differences at six- and 12-month follow-up were estimated using mixed-effects linear regression.

RESULTS: At six-month follow-up, a statistically significant and clinically relevant difference in disability favored the CFT group (-20.7, 95% confidence interval [CI] = -27.2 to -14.2, P < 0.001). Significant differences also occurred for LBP and leg pain, fear, anxiety, and catastrophizing in favor of CFT. At 12-month follow-up, the difference in disability was smaller and no longer statistically significant (-8.1, 95% CI = -17.4 to 1.2, P = 0.086). Differences in leg pain intensity and fear remained significantly in favor of CFT. Treatment satisfaction was significantly higher in the CFT group at six- (93% vs 66%) and 12-month (84% vs 52%) follow-up.

CONCLUSIONS: These findings support that CFT is beneficial for patients with NS-PLBP who are unresponsive to primary care interventions. Subsequent randomized controlled trials could incorporate booster sessions, which may result in larger effects at 12-month follow-up.